


At Sea For You (Sail Away With Me)

by jade_lil



Category: Arashi (Band)
Genre: Best Friends, Community: ninoexchange, F/M, Fanfiction, Getting Together, M/M, Ohmiya - Freeform, Sakumoto - Freeform, aimiya - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-20
Updated: 2016-07-20
Packaged: 2018-07-25 15:17:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 23,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7537819
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jade_lil/pseuds/jade_lil
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Blind date on a cruise: find love in the most unexpected places, was what’s printed above the suggested timeframe the trip should be, followed by the suggested activities that ‘would make the trip for the would-be couple worth it’ and it was enough to make Nino’s stomach lurch unpleasantly.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [whenyoudesertme (phrenk)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/phrenk/gifts).



> dearest phrenk, I hope you like my take on your prompts. I tried to incorporate as much as of everything here (I’m kidding XD, but I did try, I swear :D) and after the talk I had with one of my beta, I decided on the cruise prompt. The title came from her too. I stated Ohmiya there but keeping in mind that your first pairing choice was Aimiya, Aimiya it is, then. I really hope this is okay for you. Thank you to the team of beta who worked with me on this fic – Rikke_leonhart, Katpupi and Ren, you guys are the best. And to my number one enabler, the Empress, who had to listen to me angst over this fic for almost a month, thank you <3 I don’t know what I will do without you, really <3
> 
> Written for this year's Nino Exchange

When Nino went to work that morning, he knew something unexpected would happen.  
  
He hadn't been wrong.  
  
It was just those feelings he got when something out of the ordinary was bound to occur; the hairs at the back of his neck would stand on end and there would be this tingling sensation on the inside of his palms the same way he was feeling exactly the moment he stepped into the meeting room.  
  
His senses were on edge and he wasn't sure exactly what was causing it, almost jerking in surprise the second Aiba Masaki, his best friend, stood next to him, throwing a shapely arm over his shoulders and squeezing him before he could even shake the other man off.  
  
"Good morning, Nino," Aiba greeted with a grin that would have rivaled those damn good-looking idols his sister liked so much and gave him a wink – or at least Aiba’s creepy version of it, nodding. Nino knew that look - had seen it so many times in the past that it didn't take him long to realize what it meant.   
  
Soon he was turning his head to where the rest of the team were seated - Ikuta and Maruyama sitting next to each other at the very end of the long table, talking animatedly; Sho and Jun were, as usual, not there yet. But Sho and Jun were the least of Nino’s concerns now, as his gaze zeroed in on an unfamiliar guy's face sitting next to Shihori Kanjiya –tanned with sleepy eyes, cherub-shaped face, and a gorgeous set of lips that had Nino thinking of too many wicked things before he could even stop himself.     
  
Nino felt that familiar prickling at the back of his neck, his hand absently reaching out to grab the nearest part of Aiba he could find – Aiba’s elbow - gripping it tight enough to leave bruises.  
  
“Name?” he mumbled under his breath just loud enough for Aiba to hear.   
  
Aiba leaned in. “Ohno Satoshi, 35 years old, not married, no girlfriend,” Aiba said, dutifully. He grinned;vaguely thankful that he had trained his best friend well enough to be able to gather that much information in just a small amount of time, and trying his level best to listen while his gaze kept darting towards the new guy. “Don’t ask me if I think he’s batting for the other team because you know I can’t tell.”  
  
He nodded. “Area of expertise?” he asked.  
  
“Yoga slash dance instructor,” Aiba dutifully supplied. “Shii-chan’s recruit, apparently,”  
  
He turned. “You’re kidding,”  
  
Aiba didn’t look like it. “Nope,” Aiba shook his head at the same time the door to the meeting room opened, Jun and Sho emerging behind it. “You can check it yourself. The dude wasn’t talking, I got all that info from Shii-chan,”  
  
“No shit,” he muttered before Jun was elbowing his way inside and giving him the stinky eye when he threw Jun a glare, his usual morning greeting.   
  
“Sit your ass down, _Dumb and Dumber_ ,” Jun grumbled, pointing at their usual position on the table just as his partner, Sakurai Sho, rounded the other way and nodded at them.   
  
He sneered at Jun. “Of course, Your Highness,” he said, “I apologize for causing trouble,” he said, and then, like an afterthought, “though you have to excuse me becauseit might just be that you have mistaken me for someone else since the other half of _that_ duo is there,” he pointed at Maruyama, who went tomato red the second he realized Nino was pointing at him,“sitting next to Ikuta-san,” he said, ignoring Maruyama and the disgusting grin he had on his face and Aiba’s annoyed huff before Aiba was rounding the way towards their designated seats.  
  
Jun arched one fine brow at him. “Oh, but I thought you were theoriginal partner,” Jun grinned, “Sorry, my bad,”  
  
He grinned back. “No, I wasn’t,” he said, “since I’m smarter than most of you, no offense meant,” he said, giving Jun a wink.  
  
“Oh, really?”  
  
“Yes,” he smiled sweetly. It didn’t escape him that the new guy looked entirely unperturbed to what was happening around him and was simply staring absently in front of him.  
  
Then,“But now that you’ve mentioned it, do you want me to tell you what we fondly call you and Sho-chan?” Nino watched the way the corners of Jun’s mouth twitched at the mention of his partner’s name, how Nino was familiarly addressing the other man as if Sho was more of a friend than a mere colleague. Nino knew it irked Matsumoto Jun knowing that he was more than a little friendly with his partner and Nino, having been aware of this had used that knowledge to his advantage every goddamn time he had the chance.  
  
“Guys,” Sho called, apparently sensing another brewing bitch fight. Jun ignored his partner, Nino did too – this was too good a chance to pass on, really.  
  
“Beauty and the Beast,” he said, eyes twinkling with mischief, watching as Jun’s face relaxed into a somewhat bashful smile, at least until he pointed at Jun’s face and followed it with, _“you’re_ the beast”  
  
He barely ducked in time, grinning hugely as he sidestepped Jun and avoided getting hit in the head with a bunch of fliers as he went his merry way to hide himself behind Aiba.  
  
It was then that his gaze caught the new guy’s eyes that he realized what he did, going scarlet red and ducking his head in shame. Next to the man, Shihori Kanjiya rolled her eyes at him.  
  
In the front, he vaguely heard Sho greeting them and introducing the new guy, “Ohno Satoshi-san joined us just last week and he will be partnering with Kanjiya-san for our upcoming trip.” He didn’t realize he was staring until Aiba was elbowing him to obviously get his attention.   
  
“What?”  
  
Aiba chuckled, handing over a sheet of paper. Their next job, apparently. “Check him out later,” Aiba murmured, obviously referring to the  new guy, Ohno Satoshi-san, who looked vaguely like he was about to fall asleep, trying his level best to keep his eyes open. Nino wouldn’t admit it but he was actually busy going ‘ _awww, so cute’_ under his breath to really pay attention to anything.   
  
Aiba elbowed him again, this time a little harder and Nino actually winced at the sudden pain.   
  
“Seriously, do the eye-fucking later, okay?” Aiba was grumbling, sounding serious. “Jun-chan will have our heads on a silver platter if we miss something again, so please, pay attention. You know I’m not like you, and I can’t be trusted to remember every single detail about this meeting, so keep your shit together, at least until this meeting is over, got it?”  
  
He shrugged, shifting so he was facing the front instead of the new guy with the perfect lips.   
  
“Aye aye, Sir.”  
  
+  
  
  
Nino had been working at FOREVER YOUNG – Hospitality, Travel, Leisure Services Inc. for more than seven years now. He and Aiba joined the company as the first “Errand Boys” under the then Errand Services Chief, Joshima Shigeru-san at twenty-two, Aiba joining two weeks earlier before him.   
  
It was a company that catered to seniors or the elderly, or the “Baby Boomers”, as they were fondly referred to these days. The company offered wide range of services, from Adult day care, to investment advices, medical services, etc, and their latest addition a couple of years back, Travel and Leisure, where Nino and Aiba had been transferred to immediately after its formation.  
  
Their jobs back then were just as the name implied; errand boys for elderly people who could no longer do things by themselves _and_ for themselves, like shopping groceries for them and accompanying them to the clinic or the spa or the like.   
  
FOREVER YOUNG was amongst the first to offer such services, a pioneer in the field itself. In just a span of six months, their clients tripled in numbers so Joushima-san had to hire a couple more guys to help out, at the same time their president, Johnny-san, decided to put up two additional services to offer their clients apart from the three that already existed. The business boomed quite literally in the following years that Nino was glad he did the right choice by leaving his previous employer and joining FOREVER YOUNG despite his reluctance about the job itself at first.  
  
Now, the company offered several other services to clients, apart from the very first ones that were established during the first years Nino had joined, most of which still focused on making the lives of the elderly and their families easier. From providing medical assistance to setting these baby boomers up for a date, FOREVER YOUNGwas the company to go to.  
  
Presently, he and Aiba were working under the Travel and Leisure department – where the Errand Services fell right under immediately after the department’s formation. It was still headed by Joushima-san himself, though he was more focused on the business side of things now, having given Nino and his team of seven,which Aiba and he were a part of, free reign as to how they would work a job so long as they didn’t fuck up. They still mostly worked as “Errand Boys”, but in a kind of sophisticated way.   
  
Under the Travel and Leisure department, it was mostly, well, about travelling leisurely. Nino and Aiba, and later joined by Ikuta and Maruyama, and then followed by Sakurai Sho and Matsumoto Jun a few months later, they mostly worked with boomers – senior citizens or retirees who had saved enough to spend on travelling or do things they weren’t able to when they were still working. Jun and Sho were tasked with managing each trip’s itineraries, from meeting with the elderly clients and consulting them about the activities they would want (and are safe enough) included in the trip.   
  
Those usually included hiking, visit to shrines, skiing, onsen visits and the likes. Jun and Sho’s jobs focused on ensuring each trip was properly planned, activities included, while his and Aiba’s and Ikuta and Maruyama’s jobs were to ensure their clients are being properly cared for during the trip. The job included meeting the client personally before each trip, learning their medical histories and making sure they are well-prepared for any unforeseen emergencies such as the need for quick medical aid and such.  
  
Nino had to admit the job itself was tiring but in a way, enjoyable. He didn’t think he’d like being surrounded by old people; he’d thought he would eventually grow tired being around them, but it didn’t happen. To be honest, Nino liked his job. And most of the elderly people he had worked with eversince he joined FOREVER YOUNG, he remained friends with. He still talked to them, visited them, even those that were so old they could barely remember him.   
  
Nino liked his job enough to stay, salary package and the flexible working hours withstanding, but staring at the upcoming job he and his team would work on for the coming week, Nino wondered if requesting Joushima-san for a quick department transfer was possible.  
  
“Blind Date on a cruise?” he read out loud, startling even the quiet new guy sitting opposite of him. Next to him, Aiba hummed thoughtfully under his breath. “At sea. On a boat,” he said, his mouth twisting disbelievingly, raising his head to stare at Jun and Sho. “You’re fucking kidding, right?”  
  
“Read the job request and you’ll know it has been approved and signed by Joushima-san himself,” Jun said. Nino didn’t. That was the first thing he did the second he saw the word ‘cruise’, cringing as he scanned the paper as if it would mysteriously produce teeth and bite him.  
  
“Don’t tell me what I should and shouldn’t do, Matsumoto,” he grunted. Jun sneered at the same time Sho stood up, obviously with the intention of breaking the brewing tension. Jun saw this and Nino swore Jun’s expression softened instantly and for the life of him, Nino felt entirely justified in wanting to throw his staple wire remover at Jun’s head right then and there.   
  
Jun simply gave him a look. “I wasn’t planning to,” he said, “it’s just that it is surprising, seeing that you’ve decided to outright complain when you haven’t even checked that the job itself had been duly approved,”  
  
“I’m not complaining,” he said, eyes flickering towards Ohno-san, who looked vaguely more awake than he was minutes before. He was, to Nino’s surprise, appraising the paper with more interest than Nino supposed he should, given the fact that the entire job request plan was enough to make the hair at the back of his head stand on end.  
  
 _Blind date on a cruise: find love in the most unexpected places,_ was what’s printed above the suggested timeframe the trip should be, followed by the suggested activities that ‘ _would make the trip for the would-be couple worth it’_ and it was enough to make Nino’s stomach lurch unpleasantly.  
  
He was about to open his mouth and accuse Jun of letting his inner romantic get the best of him by actually taking this ‘Blind Date’ to the extreme because seriously, setting up the boomers for a date was a real pain, not to mention, embarrassing. It all boiled down to the cringe-worthy fact that the boomers could very well act like a bunch of lovesick teenagers that Nino had to resist the urge to blush and gag everytime he had to chaperone a pair for a walk or something. Watching younger couples being lovey-dovey with each other was sickening enough, but seeing a pair of seniors acting like that was ten times worse.   
  
Somehow, he preferred it better if they did the usual job – signing them up for travelling around the country, following them around to make sure they didn’t get sick, or worse, die, while on the trip. Seriously, it didn’t matter whether he’d have to follow them while they trekked the highest of mountains (so long as they were healthy enough to do it), didn’t matter if he had to bungee jump with them strapped on his back.  
  
But putting them on a boat and having him cruise along with them around Tokyo bay? Oh, hell, no.  
  
He opened his mouth to say as much, but the new guy, Ohno-san, beat him to it. Nino found himself staring at him, at the way his whole body was tilted to the side as he showed the paper to Shihori.   
  
“So does this mean I can bring my rail and tackle box with me on the trip, Shii-chan? We are allowed to fish during our breaks, right?” with which Shihori Kanjiya replied with a hushed “ssh!” raising her head and giving them a seemingly apologetic smile as she took the paper out from Ohno-san’s hands.  
  
Next to him, Aiba was grinning and elbowing him not-quite-lightly in the ribs in glee.   
  
“Looks like your new crush is a secret fisherman, Nino-chan. Eww.”  
  
“Shut it, Aiba-chan.”   
  
  
+  
  
  
Just when Nino thought it couldn’t get any worse, he learned that apart from the fact that he would have to spend two nights and two freaking days on a boat, of all the fucking places, he would have to babysit four pairs of boomers this time around, too.   
  
If the other three were surprised by this announcement, they didn’t show it. Nino would have put up another complaint if it wasn’t for Sho telling them that Shihori and the new guy, Ohno-san, would be there to give them a helping hand in regards to caring for their assigned seniors.  
  
“We have a total of sixteen participants this time around," Sho had announced much later, when Jun was done mocking him in the way only he knew how, the bastard. Nino had to keep reminding himself that killing Jun right then and there would be a bad idea, especially if he did it in front of an audience, so he had had to postpone that plan for later. "Eight pairs, to be exact. That means each of you -" Sho had glanced at them one by one, from him to the still blushing Maruyama sitting on his right, "will have two pairs to take care of. You will have the details of your assignments by tomorrow. Matsumoto-san will have everything ready by then,"Sho had finished.   
  
Nino felt like objecting but he knew there was no point. It was Jun and Sho’s jobs to meet with the clients with the outline of the company’s offered services, after all, their jobs to point out which services would suit their potential clients best. His job, ever since he was transferred to this department along with Aiba, and soon after with Ikuta and Maru, was to make sure their elderly clients were well-cared for regardless of the trip or the activity they would soon find themselves in.  
  
But it seemed that for the last of couple of jobs, all they got was a bunch of grandmas and grandpas who liked to try their luck in finding love, probably thinking they should go for it before their time was up.  
  
Though why it had to be on a boat when there were other means of transportation readily available was beyond him, but then again, he could probably just blame it to those two bastards. Jun probably wanted a romantic getaway with Sho for a while now but didn’t know how to say it so whenthe opportunity presented itself in the form of those unsuspecting old farts, Jun grabbed it.  
  
What an opportunistic jerk, Nino thought, mashing the keys of his console and imagining it was Jun’s face instead. It made him feel a bit better, to say the least, all the while wondering how satisfied it would make him if it really was Jun’s face he was mashing his fingers against, the thought making him grin despite himself.  
  
To be honest, the only thing that had stopped him from outright marching his way to Joushima-san’s office to request a transfer was Ohno-san and his quiet, mysterious smiles at the repeated mention of the boat trip. The way his eyes lit up when Sho said they’ll be sailing for two days along the shores of Tokyo Bay.His first work under FOREVER YOUNG and it would be at sea, the other man had mumbled to Shihori who merely gave him an elegant eye roll but otherwise said nothing. And his quiet repeats of “Do you think it’s okay? Do you think they will allow it if I want to fish during break time, Shii-chan?” that Nino had to keep himself from staring, but it still didn’t escape him, the childish gleam in Ohno-san’s eyes as he stared at the tentative outline of itinerary Jun had prepared for the meeting.  
  
And the fact that the other man had looked so very different when Nino himself had said, loud enough for Matsumoto to hear, that he didn’t see any reason why Ohno-san couldn’t fish while he was on break on the boat and that he would even gladly join the other man if Ohno-san had a spare fishing rod he could lend Nino.   
  
“Yeah, let’s see how far that lie of yours will take you since we both know that the very thought of boarding a boat is enough to make you ill,” Aiba had mocked him afterwards, voice just loud enough for Nino to hear. Nino had given him an elbow jab in return for saying something stupid.  
  
Though it wasn’t really stupid, if Nino was going to be completely honest about it; Aiba knew what he was saying, of course. Nino’s motion sickness was going to be a huge problem, but even that fact wasn’t enough to deter Nino from wanting and therefore, planning to spend quality time with Ohno-san so he could get to know him better.  
  
Nino didn't think he would feel elated and equally miserable all in one day, but he guessed there's always a first to everything.  
  
“Two-day and two-nights trip at sea,” Aiba said when he came back with a bucketful of popcorn and two bottles of beer, putting the bottles on the coffee table before Aiba slid next to him on the couch. He shifted, throwing his legs up on Aiba’s lap without bothering taking his gaze off his console, smelling the popcorn before he even saw it. “We’d probably have to buy you those anti-nausea patches just in case they don’t have them on the ship,”  
  
 _After the dinner snack_ , he thought with a grin, tearing his gaze away from his game for bit and spying Aiba scooping a handful of popcorns and popping a few into his mouth before offering the rest to him. Nino opened his mouth obediently, thankful that he decided to follow Aiba instead of going home to his empty apartment.  
  
It was his plan, to be honest, to release the frustration brought about by today’s events through smashing buttons and killing monsters on a bigger screen, but today he wasn’t in the mood to stay at home and game to his heart’s content the way he usually would. The stress from earlier was making him feel on edge, so he figured he could just follow Aiba home and pester him, make small talk while they were there. At least he could laze around and game here however long he liked to, plus there was free food. That was always a good deal in Nino’s books.  
  
“D’you think I could still file for a transfer request? I heard Taichi-kun is hiring. They need a couple more staffs to handle their growing list of customers. I heard I just need to shut my mouth and listen to them old geezers ramble about the amount of money they  have in their account and how worried they are that their relatives would discover they have that much money saved and would try to kill them to get it,” he said, only half-joking. Aiba shoved another handful of popcorn into his mouth in answer.   
  
“I dunno, are you sure you’d be okay working there? Wouldn’t you die of boredom?” Aiba asked, reaching for his beer bottle and taking a quick swig. “because I would. God, listening to them complaining all day? That’s even more exhausting than accompanying a couple of them to the supermarket or something.”  
  
“Hmm.”  
  
“Plus, if you request to be transferred now, you’d be passing off the opportunity to piss Jun-kun off, at least more than you usually do and man, I’m sure as hell you’d miss it.”  
  
“Damn right, I’d miss it,” he said, accepting more of the popcorn Aiba was offering. He chewed, imagining Jun’s face everytime he would pop byto spoil his obvious romantic plans with Sho when Jun least expected it, just to annoy him.   
  
Plus there was Ohno-san. Surely, he wouldn’t miss the chance to know the other man even if it meant he had to endure two freaking days and nights on a boat. Nausea patches and motion sickness pills exist for a reason, Nino told himself.   
  
“Fine, I’ll stay,” he said, finally, gesturing for the other bottle of beer which Aiba dutifully reached over before handing it to him. He paused his game and put it aside. “But only if you promise to help.”  
  
Aiba looked like he already knew what he was talking about even though he hadn’t elaborated on it yet. It came with the fact that they were best friends, apparently, and that Aiba could read him like an open book, despite his many attempts to keep most of his private life private.  
  
“So, what do you say?”  
  
Aiba’s eyes narrowed and the corners of his mouth twitched. “Uh, I don’t like where this is going,” Aiba muttered. “If this is about your fisherman, Nino –“  
  
He leaned in, the contents of the bottle sloshing dangerously at the movement. He knew what Aiba was about to say next, of course, _of course_ , had anticipated it even, mostly because they had an agreement with regards to each of Nino’s would-be affairs. Aiba’s help would be limited to checking the guy Nino would usually go for – his name, age, his sexual preference, his relationship status if it was possible to know it as early as possible – but that was it. The rest would all be on Nino, how he would pursue the guy would be completely on his terms, as it always had been.  
  
This time though, Nino knew he would have to ask more from his bestfriend. It came with how weak he would be during the trip (damn seasickness, really) and he was sure that getting his bestfriend to agree to spying on his prospective boyfriend would be the best option. At least he would have ample time to plan something romantic on top of everything else he’d have to plan during the two-day, two-night trip, maybe topple Matsumoto Jun’s obvious attempt at finally getting into Sho-chan’s pants using the romantic cruise as an excuse by getting inside Ohno’s own as soon as possible.  
  
“I know we’ve agreed on certain terms about my would-be relationships, but just this once, Aiba-shi,” he started, giving Aiba his most charming smile along with the puppy eyes, something that had always worked on Aiba, no matter how many times he’d used it. “Can we revise and revisit? I mean, just this once, I swear.”  
  
Aiba frowned. “What do you mean?”  
  
He allowed himself a smile, hiding it against the sleeve of Aiba’s shirt as he leaned in for the kill, folding himself against his bestfriend’s side. He knew he would be taking advantage of the fact that Aiba _couldn’t_ – didn’t have the heart to, really – refuse him no matter what he asked from him. It was why he loved his bestfriend so much even though he never said it, apart from the beautiful fact that Aiba never minded that his bestfriend was gay, and a gay with an attitude.  
  
He curled his fingers against the front of Aiba’s shirt, vaguely aware of the beer bottle getting snatched out of his other hand before he spilled the contents on himself or on Aiba, because his bestfriend was awesome that way.  
  
“Oh, you know what I mean,” he sniffed, breathing in the familiar scent of Aiba’s laundry detergent.   
  
“Nino –“  
  
He unburied his face from where he has it mashed against Aiba’s sleeve, tugging on the fabric for effect. He realized his bestfriend was looking at him with something Nino couldn’t quite pinpoint, again, and the intensity of it made him feel self-conscious without knowing why. It made him feel uneasy but at the same time, warm,that he couldn’t find it in him to look away even if he probably should have.  
  
“I want you to help me with Ohno-san, Aiba-shi,” there, he said it, not even feeling remotely embarrassed about it though he did feel a little odd, watching the way Aiba’s expression hardened.   
  
“You didn’t ask for my help before,” Aiba said, levelly. “What’s so different about him that you have to ask me now?”  
  
He thought about it before he answered, burying his nose against Aiba’s shoulder, wondering about it, too. “He’s so – quiet,” he said, remembering the way Ohno-san had kept to himself the whole time they were there, listening to Jun and Sho’s endless babbles. “Mysterious. I don’t know how I should approach him, I don’t know what he likes, what he’s thinking. I don’t even know if he likes guys or if he’s straight, and it’s just. It’s frustrating. I find it so difficult to read him, and I’m used to being able to read people, regardless if I end up liking them or not.”  
  
Aiba was quiet for a while and he was afraid he’d said too much when Aiba did answer, voice soft. “And the quiet ones weren’t usually your type,” Aiba said. “But I knew it would be the face, his build,that would draw him to you, and I was right. The moment I saw him; I knew you’d like him.”  
  
“Yeah,” he said, dreamily, half-jokingly. “That ass, have you seen it? God, I could stare at it forever, I mean, really,” he said. Aiba heaved a sigh.  
  
“Fine, then,” Aiba said, after a long beat. He raised his head quickly to stare at Aiba, face breaking into a huge grin.   
  
“Really?”   
  
Aiba nodded. “Sure,” he said. “But I’m telling you, there’s a limit to what I can, and would do to help you, alright? I’m not serenading him for you, or swim the ocean while holding up a huge banner that says ‘Please go out with me?’ because I know you, you’re a secret romantic, too,” Aiba said. He probably would have said, _you’re exactly like Jun-kun_ but held his tongue, probably for his own sake.   
  
Nino really, really loved him.  
  
“Nah, nothing disgusting, I swear,” he said, kneeling up properly and throwing his arms around Aiba’s neck but not before dropping a sound kiss to Aiba’s cheek. “You’re the best, Aiba-shi,”  
  
Aiba huffed, messing his hair and squeezing him back quick, muttering, “you’re lucky I love you,” before pushing him off.  
  
He grinned, shifting back to his place and throwing legs up on Aiba’s lap again. “Well, yes, I guess I am,” he grinned.   
  
And if he sounded entirely smug about it, Aiba sure looked like he didn’t mind or didn’t notice. He simply shook his head and gave Nino this look without saying anything, grabbed Nino’s beer from the center table and handed it over for Nino to take.


	2. Chapter 2

“Dinner’s at eight sharp, so make sure your babies are properly dressed and ready by then,” Jun had reminded them half an hour after they boarded, along with the handouts of their itinerary for their two-day and two-night Tokyo Bay cruise, complete with activities they would try to squeeze in for the whole trip.  
  
As agreed, four people had been assigned under Nino’s care. Nino had pondered over their medical records, checking each one carefully so he could outline his usual first-aid plan in case something went south.   
  
So far, there was only one who needed Nino’s close watch. Takagumi Miho-san, who would be celebrating her seventy-fifth birthday the day after, while on the cruise itself, had once broken her hip and had asthma. Though the asthma attacks, according to her and to her attending physician, whom Nino had talked to on the phone a day before their scheduled trip, were few and far in between, Nino still had to make sure she had all her medications with her before they allowed her on board along with the others.  
  
The other three, Sukamoto Rika-san, Miyamoto Kyoto-san, and Hashigawa George-san had only complained of aching joints and the occasional high-blood pressures – the usual illnesses caused by old age.  
  
“Odagawa-san was complaining about the rooming arrangements,” Aiba told him when they met up outside the hall of the room Takagumi-san was sharing with Sukamoto-san,while checking the anti-nausea patch Aiba had put behind his ear earlier. He stayed dutifully still and let Aiba inspect it without saying anything. “He said he didn’t sign up for this cruise and he most definitely didn’t pay a crapload of money only so he would end up sleeping with a fellow man,” Aiba snickered, fingers squeezing his chin lightly before he was pulling away.  
  
“Didn’t you tell him this is supposedly a blind date cruise, according to Matsumoto-san at least, and _not_ a honeymoon cruise?” he said.  
  
“I did,” Aiba said, “but you know how they are when they’re pissed, wouldn’t even listen to reason.”  
  
“Sounds like my dad, then.”  
  
Aiba chuckled. “Oh, totally.”  
  
“Why don’t you try and switch them around, then? Put Horiyama-san and Odagawa-san in the same room instead of Odagawa-san and Kumamoto-san?” he suggested.  
  
“I’d have to check if Horiyama-san will agree –“  
  
The boat rocked so suddenly he was grabbing for Aiba’s arms for support. He didn’t feel particularly dizzy yet, but with the way this damn boat was rocking, he knew he’d eventually feel it. It was just a matter of time. “Damn it, I swear to god, if this boat sinks and we die, I’ll haunt Jun’s ass even in the afterlife,” he grumbled.   
  
Aiba laughed good-naturedly and thumped him not-so-gently on the hip. “Don’t worry, Nino-chan, I’m not going to let you die. If this boat sinks, I promise you I’d leave my charges behind just to save you.”  
  
He giggled at that, couldn’t not. “Oh my god, don’t let them hear you say that or I swear to god you’d get in trouble,” he said, turning at the sound of a door opening from the end of the hall.  
  
Then, as if on cue, Jun emerged from one of the rooms, grinning, and looking like he had just stepped out from the glossy pages of those model magazines he loved carrying around with him. Perfectly-styled hair, crisp-looking three-piece black and white suit, an expensive looking pair of shiny Armani shoes and a dazzling smile to match that Nino felt the sudden urge to wipe off with his fist.  
  
“Oh, Jesus,” Aiba muttered next to him.  
  
“Hey losers,” Jun greeted them when he was close enough to do so, dazzling smile still in place. “I hope you’re not planning on going to dinner wearing those abominations you call clothes, yes?”  
  
Nino blinked, gave Jun a quick, sweeping glance before he was looking down and frowning at himself. He could hear Aiba’s snickers despite the fact that Aiba was trying but failing to be inconspicuous.  
  
“What?”   
  
“The dinner,” Jun repeated, brandishing something that looked like a menu of some sort. Nino didn’t bother look at it properly. He was busy staring at Jun, trying not to face-palm. It was kind of difficult.  
  
“Which is not for at least –“ he face-palmed nevertheless, taking his phone out from the back pockets of his jeans and checking the time. “an hour and a half. Please don’t tell me you moved the time without bothering to inform us?”  
  
“Of course not.”   
  
“Then why are you already dressed?” he asked, “More specifically, why are you dressed like _that_?” he followed. Next to him, Aiba was clearly about to lose it, feeling the familiar weight of Aiba’s arms over his shoulders, squeezing him in warning and in affection.  
  
“Why?” Jun grunted, pouting royally. It was really unfair that even when he was making that face, he still looked devastatingly handsome. Not that he was going to tell Jun that to his face, of course not. “Is there something wrong with my clothes?” Jun asked, looking down at himself.   
  
“Nothing’s wrong with it,” he said, quietly admiring the way Jun’s slacks hugged his hips. Man, Sakurai Sho was going to have the time of his fucking life when he saw Jun later, that is if he hadn’t seen him yet. Though it was obvious in the way Jun was grinning so wide as if he’d just won something that Sho probably already had. “But I’m just curious, are we having an Extra-Terrestrial Beauty Pageant Night that Aiba-san and I weren’t informed about? Because if you’re hosting it, you’re definitely wearing the perfect outfit for it.”   
  
Jun’s answering scowl made Aiba lose it entirely. He was laughing so hard he had to grab Nino’s shoulders to support himself, muffling his laughter against Nino’s hair. Nino couldn’t help it, he was giggling too, and before he realized it, Jun was reaching over to slap them across the head with his paper folder.  
  
Then he was gone, stepping past them with a grumbled, “hmph.”  
  
Nino wondered if he should apologize for teasing Jun so much, but he figured Jun would get his revenge soon enough. That’s how it always was between them, anyway. Better prepare himself for it, though.  
  
“You’re the worst, really,” Aiba commented much later, when he’d finally calmed himself enough to talk without wheezing. “God, he’s going to make you pay for what you said to him, just you wait.”  
  
“As if I’m never ready for whatever shit he would throw my way,” he said, nose in the air. Aiba chuckled and reached up to pinch his nose affectionately before he had time to avoid him. Aiba thankfully let him go before he decided to throw the first kick.  
  
“Fine, fine, whatever.”   
  
  
+  
  
He was back upstairs at the Purser’s desk an hour later. He was in his best suit and tie, his shoes polished to the T. He’d been anxious ever since he left the room he was sharing with Aiba, leaving Aiba behind to dress himself despite Aiba’s grumbles of protest so he could check on his assignments first.  
  
He thought he’d have to wait long, but thankfully, the four of them were all ready to go. Nino accompanied the ladies upstairs to the Dining Room which had been converted into a lavish-looking Private Banquet complete with about twenty-five round tables for two, lighted with aromatic candles, flowers adorning each barricading rails. The place itself was dimly lit, making it look even more romantic than Nino had given it credit for and if Nino was going to be completely honest about it, very beautiful. There was a large space at the very middle of it, obviously for people who would like to dance and a platform stage in the corner.  
  
Even Kyoto-san, and George-san who had been than less enthusiastic about going up for dinner earlier,had immediately changed their tunes the second they saw the Dining room’s arrangement. Soon, Nino found them rounding the way to where the ladies were seated, sitting themselves opposite their prospected date with an embarrassed sort of grin.  
  
Nino made sure his charges were all but properly seated, waiting until the others were, too, before he left them. But before he could, Miho-san waved him over and gave him a peck on the cheek, told him she forgot to tell him that he looked fantastic in his suit and if he could please save her a dance or two later, she would love it.  
  
He grinned at her and took her hand in his, raised it up so he could brush his lips against her knuckles. He did the same with Rika-san, and it earned him another sweet peck on the cheek for it.   
  
“Enjoy your dinner, guys,” he told them, bowing his head a little; behind him, he knew that the other three – Aiba, Ikuta and Maruyama, were also busy doing the same. He gave the two old men a wink as he gestured behind them. “I’ll just be out there if you need me. Just wave if you need me to help you with anything and I’ll come running,” he assured them with a smile. Behind him, the band he didn’t realize was already there started playing. It was Frank Sinatra’s The Way You Look Tonight.  
  
Man, Matsumoto Jun and his penchant for the theatrics, really.  
  
He was standing there for more about ten minutes more when a poke in the hip prompted him to turn around.   
  
It was Kanjiya Shihori, looking charmingly beautiful in her white, spaghetti-strapped cocktail dress that hugged her curves well and standing next to her was the man Nino had been anxiously waiting to see all evening.  
  
Ohno Satoshi looked so damn edible in his black and blue suit and a matching light blue bow tie that it was almost illegal. He was wearing his usual calm demeanor, but he did return the smile Nino gave him when he was close enough and Nino felt his heart kicked dangerously hard in his chest at the sight of it.   
  
“I was told we’d have to wait until our clients are done with their dinner and their complimentary dances before we’ll have our turn,” Shihori said. Nino had to force himself to look away from Ohno’s face, particularly his mouth so he could pay attention to what Shihori was saying.  
  
“A tiny sacrifice for the greater good, it seems,” he said, shrugging; it made Shihori giggle. “Sakurai-san’s words, not mine,”  
  
“Our good man, Sakurai-san,” Shihori said, “and Matsumoto-san too?”  
  
“The pair with the purest of hearts,” he agreed, glancing briefly at Ohno. Then, changing the subject, he said, “Can we expect you guys to show off your dancing prowess tonight or are you here for the same reason I’m here?” he asked.   
  
Shihori was immediately shaking her head when Ohno mumbled, “the food?” with a frown that matched his pouting lips, his voice loud enough for Nino to hear. The question was so sudden and the expression on Ohno’s face so serious that Nino found himself cracking up before he realized it. Shihori apparently found it less funny though she was rolling her eyes to the heaven as if she was used to Ohno spouting nonsense every now and then.  
  
“Oh, god, I’m so sorry,” he said, little puffs of mirth still tumbling out of his mouth. God, it probably wasn’t meant to be funny, but Nino found it hilarious all at the same time. “I just. Ohno-san, you have a wicked sense of humor, just so you know,” Ohno simply smiled at him and shrugged in a way that made things in Nino’s stomach trip up his throat.   
  
“I just thought you’re here for the food, too,” Ohno reasoned, “because I am. Why can’t we eat with them again?”  
  
“Because –“ Shihori said, or started to, but stopped midway when Sho’s voice carried itself to where they were, calling them, all FOREVER YOUNG staff, to join them.   
  
He spied Aiba running towards him, and Shihori tilting her head slightly in his direction before she walked away. Ohno followed her without another word.   
  
“I see you’re making good progress even without my help,” was the first thing Aiba told him when he was close enough to do so. Nino scowled at him.   
  
“What progress?” he muttered. “If you’re referring to that little word exchange that happened earlier, it was nothing. Thanks to Shi-chan, I was at least able to hear him talk. I don’t know what the deal is about those two, but Ohno-san sure seemed like he was attached to her by the hip and it’s – it’s frustrating.”  
  
“You think they’re together?”  
  
Nino gave Aiba a look. “Probably bestfriends, like us,” he said. “I mean, Shi-chan sure looks like she knows almost everything about him and indulges him. But she doesn’t look at him the way a deeply in love person looks at another. It’s just. It’s not there.”  
  
“How about Ohno-san?”  
  
He tsked, annoyed again for not being able to know or read what Ohno was thinking. “I told you, it’s so difficult for me to read him. It’s like, I don’t know, it’s very odd. I should at least be able to get something out of him by now, but I can’t.”  
  
“Seems like your gay radar is a little fucked up, huh.”  
  
That earned Aiba a not-so-gentle punch in the shoulder. “Stop reminding me, damn it,” he mumbled, then, like a bulb had been lighted up above his head, he grinned.   
  
“What?”  
  
He hooked an arm around Aiba’s elbow and led him towards the dining room area to join the other staff.   
  
“Aiba-shi, I have a plan.”  
  
  
+  
  
  
His plan, sadly, had been immediately shut down the second Jun started talking.  
  
Nino had never felt so betrayed in his entire life than at this moment, when he was watching Jun claiming the spare keys from Sakurai Sho's hand as if he was claiming the man himself before he proceeded to take the rest of the spares from all seven of them.   
  
“Okay, people, listen up,” Jun announced while the desert were being served, effectively taking everyone’s attention.  
  
It was a little game Jun came up with after dinner (or maybe he'd already thought about this way before) while their clients were busy ignoring their deserts and instead chatting excitedly with their respective dates. He announced that since there were also four pairs of staff accompanying the elderly this time around, why don’t the eight of them join in the fun too? That earned him a very enthusiastic and a very loud round of applause from the elderly which Jun returned with a shit-eating grin. It was almost disgusting.  
  
The game, as explained by Jun, would be like this; there would be two boxes – one would contain the four set of keys to the cabins reserved for the eight of them, each bearing colored ribbons, blue, red, green and purple. The other box would have matching-colored cards which would determine the rooming arrangements.   
  
Temporarily, Jun was rooming with Toma, Maru with Sho and Ohno, Aiba with Nino. Shihori had her room all to herself but with the result of this game, Shihori would have to share her room with a man.   
  
This made their audience of sixteen and the few of the ship’s cabin crews cheering for the seven of them as Shihori blushed a pretty shade of red at the unexpected attention.  
  
Jun divided them into two groups. Toma, Ohno, Aiba and as expected, Sho, made up one group while Nino, Maru, Shihori and Jun were on the other.   
  
He was sweating bullets when Jun told the two groups to line up, facing each other, the boxes in between them. He met Aiba’s gaze through the noisy cheering around him, vaguely aware about Aiba mouthing something to him. He frowned, unable to understand what his bestfriend was saying as Jun ordered each of them to take a step forward, two at a time, to pick a key and its matching card simultaneously. But that wasn’t it. Jun also told them they have to make sure to keep the cards and the keys hidden until all of them have picked one out for themselves.  
  
“I want everyone to show what they picked out at the same time, alright?” Jun reminded them, voice shaking with obvious excitement.   
  
Maru and Toma went first. The crowd was silent while Toma and Maru picked a card, but the sounds of hushed giggles that followed when they both grinned at each other goofily after they’ve picked the key and the card and stuffed them into their suits’ pockets was heartwarming.  
  
Jun and Sho stepped forward next, Jun thankfully shutting up as he picked out a card from the box. Nino saw them locked gazes for several seconds, Sho’s mouth lilting into a would-be smile as he took his hand out, bowed and then stepped back.  
  
Then it was Nino and Aiba’s turn.   
  
“It should be either you or Ohno-san,” he whispered under his breath the moment he stuck his hand inside the box hoping his best friend could hear him. “Just you or Ohno-san,”  
  
“You mean it would be so much better if it’s just Ohno-san, right?” Aiba mumbled. He tilted his head in question, frowning. There was that look on his bestfriend’s face again, the one that brought little shivers of awareness and confusion down his spine. “Fine.”   
  
He didn’t know what Aiba meant, but then he didn’t have time to figure it out. Jun was commanding them to step back, prompting Ohno and Shihori to step forward after them. He had to keep himself from checking the card he’d picked out, mumbling a quiet prayer about it not matching Toma’s or Sho’s keys if possible.   
  
Toma because he didn’t want to end up seeing Maru’s face all the damn time, especially when his work was over and all he would want was to curl on his bed, because that certainly would be the case. Maru would probably going to end up staying at his and Toma’s shared room more than he would in his own and Nino knew Toma would allow it because Toma indulged and tolerated Maru’s idiocy like a mother to her child. But despite the fact that Nino sometimes found Maru’s obvious infatuation to him adorable, he had his limits, too. Seeing Maru blush and giggle and try his best to squeeze himself into a wall whenever Nino happened to be in the same vicinity would probably urge Nino to either jump off the ship _or_ throw Maru off the ship just to avoid seeing him.  
  
Now, the reason he didn’t want to end up rooming with Sho? It was because of Matsumoto Jun, period.  
  
By the time Shihori had came back and stood next to him, Nino’s vision was going in and out of focus so that he had to squint hard to see and strain his ears to hear Jun through the roaring noise in his ear. He barely realized they were moving the table and the boxes aside, vaguely registering seeing Aiba stooping down very quickly just as Ohno was stepping back to stand next to him, and frowning at the almost blurred sight of Aiba handing something to Ohno-san once he was back on his feet, looking slightly apologetic. He shook his head, aware about Aiba’s tendency to act clumsy even in the most delicate situations and then reminding himself not to worry about Aiba for now.   
  
“Okay, everyone, step forward,” Jun announced, his hand shaking around the microphone, his voice trembling slightly, too. They did what Jun asked, taking two, three steps forward until they were about two feet apart from the other four standing opposite them.  
  
“Put your hand out with the keys and the matching cards on my cue, okay?” Jun said, shoving his other free hand inside the pocket of his suit. The rest of them copied the movement as if on autopilot.   
  
Nino barely had enough time to observe his fellow staff members, or at least the ones standing opposite them,but he did see that out of the four, Toma and Ohno were the only ones who looked positively calm despite the ongoing chaos. Toma seemed to be treating this game as if it was something he didn’t want to do but had to anyway, while Ohno only looked mildly interested.   
  
“On three,” Jun said and started counting and Nino was sure he’d never prayed so hard in his life the way he was uttering prayers then. “ _Three!”_ Jun exclaimed and then eight hands shot out almost simultaneously to the front.  
  
Nino’s eyes did a very quick sweeping glance across the four keys laid out in front of him and felt his heart race at the same time he found the one matching the card on his. He raised his head just high enough to see whose hand it belonged to, blood pounding hard through his ears loudly enough to rival the cheering noises coming from everyone around them.  
  
The second Nino’s gaze found the owner of the hand the key belonged to, it sure felt like the world in general had just halted into a full stop.  
  
“Okay, claim your roommates!” Jun shouted and the cheer this time around was louder, but damn it if could even hear it. He vaguely watched Jun stalk his way to Sho, grabbed the key Sho had in his hand and slapped the card in place of it instead, grinning smugly. He saw Toma throwing the key to Maru’s chest, Maru fumbling to catch it before he shoved both the key and the card into his suit pocket, looking positively at ease. Nino wanted to be jealous, but it was kinda difficult when he couldn’t focus enough so as not to embarrass himself further in front of an audience.  
  
“Close your mouth, Nino-chan, geez,” he heard Aiba’s voice from somewhere, barely realizing Aiba was already standing next to Shihori, twirling the key matching the card on Shihori’s hand around his fingers. A few seconds later, Ohno stepped in, the tips of their shoes almost touching; Nino briefly realized this was the closest they’ve been since they met each other the first time, his eyes glancing downwards to the key Ohno had in hand as he bowed his head.   
  
“I’m going to apologize in advance for the trouble, Ninomiya-san,” Ohno said. Nino didn’t know what to say, how to reply, just stared at Ohno gaping like an idiot, at least until someone shoved him lightly forward from behind until he almost collided face-first against Ohno.  
  
He staggered back, feeling like he ought to say something now lest things would get awkward. He didn’t realize he was turning around to find Aiba, in panic, but his bestfriend was nowhere nearby. In fact, he was alreadyfar from his reach, near the mini-stage with Jun and Sho, Shihori standing next to him, her hand curled around Aiba’s elbow.  
  
“I –“ he said, or at least started to but found that he couldn’t think of anything coherent to say to Ohno, who stood there looking like he wasn’t actually there. He was gazing dazedly on the spot near Nino’s ear, unblinking and Nino wondered why he suddenly felt so out of his depth.  
  
He was sure he was close to hyperventilating there in the middle of the crowded dining room when a cold pair of hands worming their way around his wrists saved him.  
  
When he looked down, he realized it was Miho-san.  
  
“H-Hey.”   
  
She smiled, patting his hands and tugging him with her. “You promised me a dance, young man,” she told him. He grinned down at her, vaguely sparing Ohno an apologetic look before he let himself be tugged towards the dancefloor. There were already a couple of pairs there, swaying to the cozy music the band was currently playing. The tune was familiar, but Nino couldn’t exactly remember what the title was.  
  
“So you’re here to claim me, is that it?” he joked, putting his arms around her, the gesture making her giggle in a way that made Nino smile too.  
  
“And to tell you that you look absolutely stunning in your suit,” she said, lightly tugging on his tie, tilting her head and nodding. “Aiba-kun, too.”  
  
That warmed him. “So do you,” he told here, adding, “and you already did, you remember?” He winked at her.  
  
“And that you should pay more attention,” she continued as if he hadn’t interrupted her as she looked up at him thoughtfully. “Because you won’t know what you’re missing if you focus your attention on someone who doesn’t deserve it, who wouldn’t ever see it, appreciate it because his attention is already on someone else.”  
  
He frowned. “Miho-san, what are you talking about?”  
  
She reached up, patting his cheek softly, affectionately; he didn’t know why but the way she looked at him somehow reminded him of his late grandmother – the older woman with the cheeky grin and warm, affectionate smile. “You’re smart, Kazu-chan,” she said. “You’ll figure it out.”  
  
  
+  
  
At quarter past one, he was in the room he would be sharing with Ohno, pacing around the carpeted floor like a man waiting for his wife to deliver their first child. He’d dimmed the lights and made the beds, both of them (there were twin single beds here, much to Nino’s disappointment) even though he was not entirely sure why he did it. He’d even showered and made an effort to find the newest pair of sweats he owned, as if whatever he was wearing would even matter.   
  
Well, it wasn’t like he was aiming to get down and dirty with Ohno tonight (but if he’d get lucky, then why the hell not?), not with the fact that they’ve barely spoken to each other during those few times they were in the same vicinity, but somehow, he at least wanted to get to know the other man better. It was kind of hard to do that when they’re in the company of the other staff members, when he’s working and Ohno probably was, too, but staying in the same room with him would surely change that.  
  
He was wondering about the perfect conversation-starter once Ohno walked in the door, when his gaze went past the beds and onto the digital clock blinking back at him thathe realized how late it already was.  
  
They left the dining room half an hour past eleven. He was the first to lead his charges back into their rooms, despite George-san’s complaints about not being able to dance with Miho-san, not even once that evening.  
  
“You’ll have your turn tomorrow, I promise,” he told the older man, much to George-san’s delight. It seemed like George-san and Kyoto-san both fancied Miho-san, not that she actually noticed it because she was busy having fun with them and was making great friends with the others, too. And if he didn’t think of something to make sure one of them would turn his attention to the other woman, Rika-san, then he’d have a bigger problem than that promised dance come morning.  
  
And that was almost two hours ago, so where the hell was Ohno?  
  
He was in the middle of worrying himself sick, about what could have happened with the other man, conversation-starter be damned, when someone who very clearly didn’t sound like Ohno, at all, was calling Nino’s name from behind it.   
  
It was Aiba.  
  
“Nino-chan –“  
  
He was yanking the door open and grunting, poking his head out of the door and checking the hallways quickly without bothering saying hello. When he was assured that the hallways are empty and that there was no clear sign of his supposed roommate, he stood there, frowning, arms crossed tightly over his chest, his back against the cabin’s door.  
  
“Aiba-shi, what are you doing here?” he hissed, noting the fact that his bestfriend was huffing and there was moisture gathering at his temples. “And oh my god, what the hell have you been doing? Please don’t tell me you decide to go for a run around the ship at almost two in the morning?”  
  
Aiba waved him off. “No, of course not, just. Umm. Are you going to sleep now?”  
  
His frown deepened. “Do I look like I’m about to?” he said. Aiba stared pointedly at him. He sighed. “Well, no. My roommate’s not here yet,” he said, depressed.   
  
“So what does him not being here have to do with whether you want to sleep or not? Oh, you’re waiting for him?” Aiba returned. “Jeez. You’re being so nice it’s scary,”  
  
“Shut up,” he grumbled. “I just. I have to lock the door and he doesn’t have a spare key. Matsumoto took all the spares, you know that. I’m supposed to wait for him, open the door for him,” he said, “Which reminds me, how are you going to get into the room you’re sharing with Shi-chan if she locks you out?”  
  
Aiba opened his mouth obviously about to say something but closed it again immediately. Nino frowned.   
  
“What’s wrong, Aiba-chan?”  
  
“Nothing,” Aiba said. “I just. I don’t feel like sleeping there tonight, in the same room with her, I mean.”  
  
Brows arching, he gave Aiba a suspicious glare. “Well, there’s no way I’m going to let you sleep here,” he said. “I mean, I can, but you know it’s –“  
  
“Your roommate is not here anyway,” Aiba said, “and he probably won’t be, not tonight.”   
  
“What?”  
  
“He’s – well, I saw him on his way to the upper decks, said he was going fishing,”  
  
He frowned, feeling slightly incredulous. Was he serious? “At this time of night?”  
  
“It’s morning,” Aiba pointed out; he pointedly ignored him.   
  
“Is he crazy?” he grunted, turning round and walking straight inside, sitting himself on the edge of the bed with a huff – the one he’d decided on after a few minutes of poking and checking the mattresses. “I mean, can’t he do that tomorrow? Or at least when the sun is up? Will he be able to catch anything at this time?”  
  
“He already has,” Aiba grumbled, low enough that Nino almost didn’t catch it.   
  
“What was that?”  
  
“He _might_ already have, I said,” Aiba said, looking obviously irritated. Nino wondered what was wrong with him. “I mean, since he’s been there for about an hour now,” Aiba added, then, “so, can I sleep here?” he asked, already crawling his way to Nino’s bed without prompting, and Nino belatedly realized Aiba was still on his suit pants and dress shirt he wore earlier for dinner.   
  
“Why are you still wearing that? Weren’t you supposed to have showered already and get changed, at least? Is Shi-chan giving you trouble or what?”  
  
“No, and I planned to but –“ Aiba said, then paused, taking his gaze elsewhere. Nino wanted to be annoyed, but it was late and despite the fact that he did plan to wait until Ohno came back, his body was clearly not in agreement with this. He could already feel the strain of the previous day in the way he could barely keep his eyes open, yawning despite his best efforts to keep it in.  
  
“Fine, whatever,” he grumbled, crawling on the bed with Aiba and shoving him to give him space. Soon they were under the covers, his face pressed against Aiba’s chest, Aiba’s arm thrown companionably around his waist. “You should lock the door,” he mumbled into Aiba’s chest.  
  
“I thought you already did, but okay.”  
  
“Don’t forget,” he said around another yawn, fingers twisting into the fabric of Aiba’s dress shirt. “And you should at least change your shirt. You stink,” he lied, digging his nose into the hollow space of Aiba’s throat.  
  
“I will, later,” Aiba mumbled into his hair. “I’ll borrow one of yours since I don’t have my suitcase with me.”  
  
He was quickly losing the will to keep his eyes open, when he was so comfortable with where he was, nosing at his bestfriend’s neck, the familiar though faint scent of Aiba’s cologne lulling him to sleep.“Not the white one and definitely not the yellow one you brought back from Cebu, yeah?”  
  
“The black one, then.”  
  
“Sure.”  
  
“Go to sleep, Nino.”  
  
“If Ohno-san knocks –“  
  
“I’ll open the door for him, I promise.”  
  
He curled his fingers against the front of Aiba’s dress shirt, already drifting faster than he would have wanted to. “And you will not go back to sleep next to me when he comes in?”  
  
“I won’t.”  
  
“ – ‘kay,”  
  
“Goodnight, Nino-chan.”  
  
He sighed, vaguely felt the soft press of Aiba’s lips against his temple, the feel of Aiba’s warm breath as he hummed an almost distant-sounding tune. He was out like a light the moment Aiba’s arms wound tight around him and gathered him in.


	3. Chapter 3

He woke up to the sound of his phone alarm beeping insistently on the nightstand, realizing belatedly that he was alone. The next bed over was still empty, the sheets un-rumpled so it was obvious that Aiba was right. Ohno either spent the whole night fishing or he ended up falling asleep somewhere else.  
  
He grabbed his phone and squinted at the time, trying to remember when he had set his alarm but couldn’t. It was quarter past six; still an ample time to shower and get dressed before he had to check on his babies and bring them upstairs for breakfast when the familiar sight of his nausea medication caught his eyes, sitting there on the nightstand.  
  
A piece of paper was beneath it, and Nino recognized the handwriting before he even properly read the note.  
  
 _Nino-chan,_  
  
 _Good morning!_  
  
 _I’ve set your alarm for you so if you’re reading this it means you’re already awake, I’m sorry about that. I could have let you sleep in, but I don’t want Matsumoto-san bitching at you so early because you might just bitch at him back and that’s never an enticing sight, especially in the morning and especially in front of our clients. I’ll come over at exactly seven to bring you a cup of coffee and to help you with your anti-nausea patch when I’m sure you’re done showering, okay?_  
  
 _So wakey wakey, jump off the bed and take a bath. Your babies will want breakfast, mine too, I’m sure, so get up and get going!_  
  
 _Your bestest bestfriend in the whole wide world,_  
  
 _Aiba-chan_  
  
 _P.S. I borrowed the black shirt. I’ll return it to you later, laundered and properly folded. Love you!_  
  
  
He couldn’t help it, he smiled, found himself reading the note again twice before folding it again and rummaging his suitcase for the folder where he would be keeping it, and where he was keeping all the other letters that came before it. He checked the folder and found that the last note he got was from over three months ago, the time when they went with their clients to Kyoto.  
  
He took his pen out and wrote the date behind the paper, before securely slipping it inside the clear plastic sheet. Then he took his phone and typed a quick message to Aiba, grinning despite himself, barely remembering glancing at the other empty bed as he went to take a shower.  
  
  
+  
  
He and Aiba were lounging at one of the empty tables while their charges were having breakfast and chatting an hour later, when he spied Ohno walking to the other end of the dining room with Jun. Even from the distance, he was, Nino noted, looked nothing like a person who spent an entire night awake. Even from afar, Nino could tell that Ohno looked far more awake than he himself probably was; his hair looking freshly washed and was still damp from shower even though he was still wearing his outfit from last night, the dress shirt and the slacks, minus the suit jacket and the tie.   
  
“What?” asked Aiba.   
  
“Nothing,” he shrugged, trying to act nonchalant but was already failing. Soon, his bestfriend was gazing at him with that awfully familiar arch of his brow, the corners of his mouth curled with impatience.  
  
He should have probably let it out before Aiba start to verbally box his ear if he didn’t. He sighed. “It’s just that - Well, you’re sure Ohno-san didn’t come back last night, right?” he asked. Aiba nodded. “And he didn’t come this morning to shower or change too?” Aiba shook his head.  
  
“I left your room at six,” Aiba said by way of explanation. “and from the time I arrived until I fell asleep around three-thirty, I swear no one knocked on the door. I would know if someone was there, you know that. I’m a light-sleeper,” Aiba explained. Nino nodded, he knew this, of course.   
  
“Of course, Aiba-shi.”  
  
“He might have stayed until morning to fish,” Aiba added, taking another hearty sip of his coffee. Nino wanted to believe him, but the glaring fact that Ohno looked far better than he himself probably did despite the almost five hours of sleep he had made it a little difficult. “Is there something wrong?”  
  
“Nothing,” he said, forcing his gaze away from Ohno and Jun, who were later joined by Sho and told himself he was seeing things. Maybe, he was just sour that he didn’t get to spend that first night with Ohno despite his apparent luck he had earlier last night. Maybe, he was really just looking forward to talk to the man, get to know him better; that he was simply feeling bad because he wasn’t able to.  
  
“If I were you, I would just forget about him,” Aiba mumbled, the statement very sudden that it left Nino gaping in surprise. It was the first time he heard such a thing from his bestfriend, afterall.  
  
“Eh?”   
  
Aiba opened his mouth to talk and snapped it close again immediately afterwards. Nino wondered what in hell happened to him, what made him dislike Ohno so much when he’d never bothered with any of Nino’s past relationships before. It was so odd, watching his normally pleasant and cheerful bestfriend turned into this scowling man, wondering what in hell had prompted Aiba to act this way now.  
  
Aiba finished the rest of his coffee in one go and stood up hastily his chair going with him, its legs scraping noisily against the floorboards.   
  
“Can’t you listen to me just this once, Nino?” Aiba said, utterly serious, and Nino swore there was something in his eyes that told him he was anything but. “I mean, you know I’ve never, not even once, gotten in between you and your past affairs but this – Ohno-san is –“  
  
“ – going to be teaching our clients how to do the cha-cha!” Jun cut in, voice unusually loud he effectively shut Aiba up. Nino looked up, confused, until he realized Jun was with Sho, and standing next to them was Ohno himself. Nino stood up, blinking, and this close, Nino was treated with an impending view of Ohno, of his unchanged clothes and shower-damp hair.   
  
It didn’t help that despite the almost faraway look on Ohno face, Nino still found him so irresistibly attractive that he was unable to string two words properly together the second his gaze slid down from Ohno’s eyes to the almost unrecognizable bruise on his lower lip.  
  
“What do you think, Ninomiya-san?” Jun prompted him.  
  
“W-What?” he stuttered; Jun rolled his eyes at him as if the bastard was well aware about Nino’s girly crush on Ohno and was going to embarrass himself if he would just wait patiently. Nino felt like socking him in the face.   
  
“It’s in the agenda, Ninomiya-san, or have you already forgotten?” Jun said, smirking like a total bastard. God, he would give everything just so he would be allowed to erase that permanent smirk tugging at the corners of the other man’s mouth, especially at the moment when Nino wasn’t feeling particularly kind-hearted. He just had an unexpected spat with his bestfriend, after all, and Jun coming in here looking like the world’s happiest bastard was getting on Nino’s nerves.   
  
“Oh, but I clearly remember it was up for discussion, especially since most of our clients are suffering from rheumatism, or have you already forgotten that, Matsumoto-san?” he said, keeping his tone as sweet as he could manage it, giving Jun an equally sweet smile to accompany it. Jun merely raised one perfect brow at him.   
  
“It was just a suggestion from Jun, Nino,” Sho butted in, like always, to break the tension. Nino’s eyes glaze over to Ohno who was obviously keeping his opinions to himself.   
  
“Well, it surely didn’t sound like one, Sho-chan,” he said, emphasizing the _–chan_ just to annoy Jun. It did, apparently, as it was obvious in the way the corners of Jun’s mouth twitched in answer. This time when he spoke again, he was the one smirking. “and as far as I know, we should make their last night here as relaxing as it’s ever going to be for them. Dancing will tire them out, no offense meant, Ohno-san,” he added, gave Ohno an apologetic smile which the other man returned with a small shake of his head.   
  
“It’s still early, though,” Sho said, “we can just ask them what they want to do later during lunch or something. I’m sure we can work something out.”   
  
“I’ll see what I can do,” he readily agreed. Jun gave him another of those nasty stares of his, but he knew better than to call Jun out on it and just promptly ignored him. He knew he didn’t really have to disagree with Jun all the time, especially about work and especially in front of a colleague, but he couldn’t help it.  
  
He was jealous of Jun, it was that simple, of how obviously happy he was when he himself wasn’t; how brave (and completely shameless, to be honest) Jun totally was for doing everything in his power to get what he’d been wanting for so long regardless of what the others thought of him.   
  
And it was evident in the way Jun and Sho were acting around each other now that something certainly did change during the past few hours they’d spent in the same room together. It wasn’t something worth being jealous over, really, but it was difficult to think sensibly when he wanted the same thing and didn’t have it, couldn’t have it despite putting up his best efforts to possess it.   
  
It was very childish, but Nino supposed he could act like it if he wanted to, especially since they were here for work and not for their own personal pleasures. And apart from the fact that he was still fairly convinced that this trip had been decided purely for Matsumoto Jun’s own benefit (hah!), there was no way he was going to compromise their elderly clients’ safety and well-being just to indulge Jun and his damn caprices no matter the cost.   
  
Nino knew himself well enough to know he only had a few good qualities to boot and one of them, certainly, was his admittedly soft spot for those old people, whether they were his clients or not.  
  
It probably came with working directly and personally with those elderly clients that made forming an attachment with them so easy (unlike Jun and Sho’s jobs which only involved signing them up for the service and taking their money),that he frequently found himself more emotionally involved with them than he probably should have allowed, but Nino knew things like that happen and he was perfectly fine with it. Jun and Sho probably had no idea how deep his attachment to his clients was and that he never really treated them as such, even those he worked with from long ago, but he guessed it didn’t matter. What was important was that Jun and Sho, no matter how little their participation were with regards to their clients’ safeties, they weren’t stupid enough to force their opinions on Nino especially when it came to activities that Nino had outright declined. They trusted Nino’s judgments after all, had never questioned Nino’s decisions especially when it concerned their clients.  
  
He raised his head to meet Jun and Sho’s gazes straight on. “But I’m not promising anything,” he followed at the same time he spied Aiba leaving the dining room with Maru and the rest of their charges from the corners of his eyes.  
  
“Fair enough,” Sho said. “Either way, will you check back with us once you’ve spoken to them?” Sho asked. Nino vaguely heard him as his gaze followed Aiba’s retreating back. Something in his chest rattled again and it was disconcerting enough he found himself frowning at the hallway Aiba disappeared into along with his charges before he remembered what he’s being asked.  
  
Nino nodded, glancing briefly to his right where Ohno was, quiet as a rock. “Of course,” he answered, distracted, before he excused himself.   
  
  
+  
  
  
He had just taken his charges back to their respective rooms and was rounding the hallway towards the one he was sharing with Ohno when Shihori appeared out of nowhere she almost bumped face-first against Nino if it wasn’t for Nino’s unexpected fact reflexes, her usually finely-groomed long hair askew, eyes and lips visibly red.   
  
She was also breathing unusually fast as if she’d been running.  
  
“Shi-chan, what’s wrong?”   
  
For a moment there she remained quiet, and Nino didn’t like the way his imagination was running wild at the sight of her, of her fingers twisting nervously against the top of her dress. Nino couldn’t help but notice that three of her buttons were undone and there were patches of red marring her upper neck.  
  
Something in Nino’s chest rattled painfully at the sight.  
  
Did something happen? Did someone do something to hurt her? Force himself on her? Maybe he should check, maybe he should make sure whoever did this to her wasn’t going anywhere. He was quickly craning his head behind her, his hands protectively on her shoulders. The hallway was empty.  
  
He was immediately but very carefully shaking her. “Shi-chan, are you okay? Seriously, if there’s something wrong, you have to tell me –“ he asked, softly. He couldn’t risk scaring her even more, not when she seemed terrified already. She was shaking beneath his hold and he didn’t know what to do to calm her.   
  
“Shi-chan, I’m serious, if something happened, or if someone was –“  
  
She shook her head in answer, cutting him off before he could even finish. His hands on her shoulders slipped and she side-stepped him, leaving him so quickly he was left there gaping after her in confusion.   
  
Nino was torn between staying there and following her, but it was obvious in the way she had run off like the devil was after her that she wanted to be left alone. He was sure something happened to her, otherwise she wouldn’t ran off looking like a deer caught in headlights but there was nothing he could do if she didn’t want his help.   
  
He turned, already thinking of talking to Aiba when the second he raised his head, Aiba was already there.  
  
“Waah!” he screamed so loud in shock he staggered, almost losing his balance until Aiba’s hands caught him, Aiba’s arms wounding around his waist to steady him. “Goddamnit, Aiba-chan, what the hell!” he hissed, pushing Aiba away with a growl. “make a noise, will you? Damn it, but you nearly fucking killed me!”  
  
“It wasn’t my fault you’re a scaredy cat, Nino-chan,” Aiba chuckled in answer, looking so very different from how he left Nino earlier. Aiba’s infectious smile was back and his earlier grumpiness gone. Nino found himself staring – at the sweat gathering on Aiba’s temple, his bruised lips, his messy hair -  until he realized Aiba was snapping his fingers in front of his face to get his attention.   
  
“Hey, are you okay?” Nino vaguely heard him asking. Something was nagging at him. “Dizzy? Do you want me to get you another patch or do you prefer pills this time – Nino?“  
  
He was stepping forward and hooking his fingers against the front of Aiba’s shirt angrily before Aiba could even react.   
  
“What the hell, Aiba-chan, what did you do to Shi-chan?!”  
  
  
+  
  
  
Aiba looked positively clueless at first before his eyes widened marginally in obvious surprise. Something told Nino that Aiba knew something.  
  
“I swear I’m going to beat the shit out of you if you don’t tell me what’s going on, Aiba-chan,” he growled, serious.   
  
Aiba’s eyes flickered to the left, a clear indication that he was trying – and very obviously failing – to hide something. “I didn’t do anything,” Aiba muttered, fingers finding Nino’s wrists and tugging. Nino winced but otherwise kept his grip tightly against the front of Aiba’s shirt, unwilling to let go. “Nino, listen to me. I _didn’t_ do anything, okay?”  
  
He wanted to believe Aiba, he really did, because he knew Aiba wasn’t the type to force a woman, never mind harass one and the fact that it was Shihori made it even harder to believe Aiba was capable of it. But it was difficult to shove the memories of Shihori’s face out of his mind, the painful tears in her eyes, the miserable curl of her lips.  
  
“But Shi-chan –“  
  
“ – is perfectly fine, as far as I  know,” Aiba told him, fingers light and encouraging against his wrist. Their eyes met then, and for one confusing second, Nino realized he couldn’t breathe. He believed Aiba, of course, _of course_ , but it couldn’t explain the upsetting and painful tug he had in his chest at that exact moment, when he was staring at Aiba’s face and knowing he was doubting him.  
  
“By the looks of it, she wasn’t,” he said, tugging his hand roughly away. He turned his back on Aiba if only to swallow the bitter taste of something he couldn’t put a name beneath his tongue, frowning at the space before him without actually seeing anything.   
  
What the hell was happening to him?  
  
He breathed carefully through his nose and let it all out in one go. “She was crying, and she looked like someone had forcefully –“  
  
“Believe me, she’s _fine_ ,” Aiba cut in, as if he knew exactly what he was saying as he reached over and squeezed Nino’s shoulder in a way that Nino supposed should be reassuring. He wasn’t the slightest bit assured though, and if that wasn’t enough to confuse him further, he didn’t know what else would.   
  
“How do you suppose I should do that when I saw what she looked like with my own two eyes?” he said, without bothering turning round. It was bad enough that he was doubting Aiba on top of his childish jealousy over Matsumoto Jun’s blooming love life, but to have this unexplainable ache in his chest at the fact that his bestfriend was maybe, probably, in love with Shihori and had probably, maybe, possibly did something so horrible to Shihori? It was completely uncalled for.   
  
“Surely, your eyes have not been serving their purpose well enough for you to believe them,” Aiba returned, sounding gravely serious. He turned around to find Aiba walking away before he could stop him. Nino felt that unfamiliar twisting in his chest entirely difficult to ignore, much less comprehend, as he watched Aiba’s retreating back for the second time that day, wondering what went wrong.  
  
  
+  
  
  
Ten out of their sixteen boomers agreed to take up Ohno’s cha-cha lessons a few hours after lunch so they could hit the floor with their dancing shoes later that evening, in pairs. Jun looked far more ecstatic than the boomers themselves it was completely hilarious.  
  
It was a good thing that at least, he was able to still propose his plan in regards to Miho-san’s surprise 75th birthday party celebration, as he had kept himself from greeting the older woman the second he saw her earlier. Sho had agreed to squeeze in the cake-blowing ceremony before the dessert, much to Nino’s delight.  
  
But still, with the oncoming cha-cha lessons and the planned ballroom dancing party later on, he couldn’t help but feel a little worried.  
  
“If one of them breaks a hip or something, we’re fucked,” he whispered to Toma over at lunch, while Maru kept throwing creepy glances at Nino over the rim of his glass.   
  
Their clients were done with their lunch andmost of them were presently lounging at the upper decks drinking tea and playing cards while the others were back in their rooms, napping. He hadn’t seen his bestfriend since the Shihori incident and Nino had this sickening urge to forego lunch in favor of finding Aiba, but he kept himself from doing so.   
  
“I’m not sure Matsumoto-san and Sakurai-san share the same sentiment,” Toma chuckled as he put down his half-empty glass of pineapple juice, glancing behind them probably to make sure Jun or Sho were nowhere near.   
  
“It won’t even surprise me,” he said briskly; “since they would probably just whip out the waivers and insurance papers to our clients’ families’ faces without bothering explaining. I just. God, I hate it when things like this happen,”  
  
“You remember the last time we went on that skiing trip?” Toma asked, shaking his head at the memory. Nino didn’t even want to remember it because that was one of the worst memories he had since working this job after all, but he couldn’t help it.   
  
It was a little over a year ago, around January, maybe a few days before Sho’s birthday when they went on this trip to Yuzawa. They have a total of six boomers then, all male, everyone adventurous enough to sign up for skiing and snowboarding activity led by Sakurai himself.   
  
They haven’t even been there for more than a couple of hours when the accident happened. Tori-san, one of the youngest of the bunch, only sixty-two years old at the time, had collapsed mid-ski and hit himself on the snowy ground, head-first, and died almost instantly.  
  
The paperwork hadn’t been that much trouble; at least not as much as facing their client’s family and explaining to them exactly what had happened. Nino couldn’t bear the thought that someone had died even despite their close watch, and he didn’t think he would ever forget the look of pain and anger on the deceased’s family’s faces as long as he was alive.  
  
But then again, what Joushima-san had told them once they went back to their Tokyo office to regroup, that accidents like that happen and there was nothing - no matter how careful they were - they could have done to stop it.  
  
“Yeah,” he sighed. “And I swear to god if that happens again, I’m quitting,” he said, spying Maru shaking his head and staring at him as if the very thought of Nino leaving the company was painful to him.   
  
“Well, let’s just hope we get through this night and the rest of tomorrow here without mishaps,” Toma said, raising his half-empty glass to his lips. Nino smiled and did the same.   
  
  
  
+  
  
  
“Wow,” he mumbled quietly under his breath, more than a little awed at the way Ohno moved on the dance floor, lithe and graceful and so very different from the usually tamed and quiet man he was used to seeing from the past couple of days since he met him. It didn’t even matter that Ohno’s partners were these old ladies with bad backs and aching joints because damn, the guy could move those damn hips if he wanted to.   
  
For a second there, he was thankful Jun suggested this impromptu dance lesson. Watching Ohno teach the ladies one by one, swaying them with his elegant fingers fanned across the small of their backs made him want to imagine he was one of them too.  
  
“Graceful, isn’t he?” a familiar voice cut through his admittedly stupid daydream. It was Shihori.  
  
“Shi-chan.”   
  
Shihori met his gaze and gave him a wink, playful and endearing that was familiarly hers and it made remembering the sight of her earlier – in tears, hair askew and with marks marring her soft skin – difficult. She took her gaze back to Ohno who was now squeezed in between Miho-san and Rika-san, his arms around the ladies’ waists.   
  
“He was a dancer, even back then,” Shihori said; there was something in her eyes that Nino couldn’t put his fingers on, something that was a little tender, familiar. He couldn’t look away, couldn’t avert his eyes even though he probably ought to. “a choreographer and a dance teacher in his own dance studio,but at one point he got tired of it, said it was probably high time he did something else. Then after that, he went to work under his father – it’s a family business – but he also quit not even six months later,” Shihori continued with an absent-sort of look on her face. Nino wondered why she was telling him this.   
  
“Sounds like you’ve known Ohno-san for far longer than I thought you do,” he said instead.  
  
She smiled, small and mysterious. “He was my junior high prom date.”  
  
“Seriously?!” he exclaimed. Shihori nodded. Nino smiled because he could picture it so clearly; Shihori, on her elegant but cute pink prom dress with Ohno by her side.   
  
“Yeah,” she said with a soft smile on her face. “My classmates were so jealous, especially when he started dancing.”  
  
“I can imagine,” he said, nodding his head. He felt like asking her what her relationship with Ohno was, but he didn’t want to be rude. Besides, it sure didn’t seem like they were more than close friends, and Nino wouldn’t even be surprised if she told him Ohno was her older half-brother because they certainly gave off that impression.   
  
She turned to face her then and Nino swore the soft, almost faraway look on her face was gone, and in its place was something playful, childish. Nino didn’t know what to make of it.   
  
“What?”  
  
Shihori dimpled at him. “You like him, don’t you?” she asked, her eyes twinkling with quiet mischief. Nino felt the heat creep up his cheeks at the suddenness. “You totally do,” she said, “it’s so cute.”  
  
“Shut up,” he muttered, feigning annoyance, though he was pretty certain she wouldn’t be fooled. He wasn’t entirely good at hiding his feelings, after all, especially when he liked someone so much, but he guessed it couldn’t be helped. He just had to avoid making her feel like he wanted her help to get close to Ohno.   
  
She stood up before he was able to rearrange his thoughts, touching his elbow and squeezing. “Well, good luck then,” she told him, still smiling like they’ve just told each other a secret no one else must know. Then she walked away, her footsteps light and her smile still in place. He was glad, to say the least, seeing that she looked marginally better than she was when he last saw her, even if her smile was at his expense.   
  
When he raised his head again, Aiba was there, standing at the opposite end and looking thoughtfully at him. Nino felt that unfamiliar painful tug in his chest again the moment Aiba averted his gaze.  
  
Nino didn’t know whether to be pissed. He took his phone out and typed a quick message to Aiba, his gaze flicking back to Aiba’s face.   
  
_Are you mad at me?_  
  
It took a while for Aiba to reply, but when he did, Nino realized his chest was pounding.   
                                                                                                                
_No,_ was Aiba’s simple answer, and Nino wondered why it felt so much like a lie. He raised his head and did his best to catch Aiba’s eyes but even from the distance, Aiba was careful not to meet his.  
  
 _Then why are you acting like you are?_  
  
 _I’m pissed_ , Aiba admitted; Nino frowned at the message, unsure of what to think, of what to answer. _And I hate it. Because you’re so damn stubborn and I hate that I don’t know how to deal with your stubbornness._  
  
 _I’ve always been stubborn_ , he replied, fingers shaking as he typed the message away. _And you’ve always dealt with me just fine, so what’s the problem this time?_  
  
 _Ohno-san_ , was Aiba’s simple reply. The sudden rush of annoyance was so surprising he found himself locking his phone and standing up at the same time, hands shoved into the pockets of his jeans as he strode his way towards Aiba.   
  
Aiba’s expression was weary, but there was something in his gaze that made Nino pause but only for a second or two because then he realized how absurd it all was. This was his bestfriend he was having a spat with after all and that no matter how damn petty the reason was, they had to fix this.   
  
Screw it, he thought, toughing it up and walking the rest of the way to where Aiba was, stopping when he was merely a few steps away.  
  
“What’s your problem, seriously?” he hissed, only vaguely thankful that everyone was busy and no one was near enough them to hear him.   
  
Aiba gave him a look, an exasperated one at that. “ _You_ asked, I answered. Now _I’m_ the one with _the_ problem?” Aiba said. Nino felt justified for wanting to hit him.  
  
“I don’t know what Ohno-san did to you,” he said, more like hiss. “for you to hate him this much.”  
  
“I don’t hate him.”  
  
“But you don’t like him either.”  
  
“You know that’s not mutually exclusive,” Aiba told him, voice unmistakably even. “And besides, you’re the one who has a crush on him, I _don’t_ , so you should not expect me to like him just because you do,” Aiba finished with that same stubborn look that made Nino want to bash his head against the nearest wall.   
  
“That’s not it, Aiba-chan,” he returned, feeling a headache coming. “You know it’s not just it,” he pointed out,“I mean, you’ve been acting weird since yesterday and I don’t know what triggered it. You were okay with Ohno-san before and now –“  
  
“You won’t get it,” Aiba cut in, “you won’t _ever_ get it because you’re too stubborn for your own good, because you never listen, never, even if I begged you to.”  
  
“I’m not sure how you expect me to listen to you when I don’t even know the reason why you’re acting this way, why you’re insisting I give up on the man I like even though you never asked me to before,” he countered, pissed. He didn’t know why it surely felt like Aiba’s dislike to Ohno wasn’t all that simple, even if that was obviously what he wanted Nino to think.  
  
Aiba was quiet for all of two seconds before Nino watched him backed away from the wall he was previously leaning against, eyes shaded with something Nino couldn’t look away from.  
  
“Then don’t,” Aiba said, with finality; his voice is marred with seriousness that made the inside of Nino’s stomach twist. “but don’t you dare blame me if everything goes wrongly because I already warned you. I already did, Nino-chan. The rest is up to you,” Aiba said, giving Nino one last look before he walked off.   
  
  
+  
  
  
“I don’t know what his problem is,” he told Miho-san while he was behind the older woman giving her a backrub. They were at Miho-san and Rika-san’s rooms – Rika-san was busy ogling each of the clothes she had laid across her bed, probably trying to decide what she would wear for tonight’s dinner (and ballroom dancing party) while Miho-san seemed hardly bothered. She said she’d rather spend the rest of the evening after dinner on the upper decks and enjoy the view of the nighttime Tokyo skies the way she would no longer be able to once she went home.  
  
Nino spent almost half an hour of his visit here in their room convincing the older woman not to ditch the after party dance, lest their planned surprise birthday celebration would go to waste.   
  
Right now though, the dinner and the dance party after that were the least of his concerns.   
  
His _best friend_ was.   
  
“Maybe you do,” Miho-san told him, apropos of nothing, and Nino found himself frowning at the grey hairs at the top of Miho-san’s head. “Maybe you’re just scared to admit it.”  
  
“Excuse me?”  
  
The older woman looked up then, her fingers finding his and squeezing. The expression on her face reminded Nino yet again of his late grandmother, her smile, the understanding behind her eyes.   
  
“Open your eyes as well as your heart, Kazu-chan,” she told him, tugging him down and placing her wrinkly hand against the front of his shirt, patting the spot where his heart was beating steadily underneath. “Because once you do that, you’ll find that certain, important things have just been staring you in the face, waving at you, trying to get your attention, things you weren’t able to see before because you were too busy staring at something else. You’ll realize you don’t even need to look very far because the one you need, the one you want is just right there, waiting for you to notice it.”  
  
“Miho-san, I don’t understand –“  
  
She cut him off with a smile and a hand pressed against his cheek. “You don’t, not now, but soon,” she told him, patting his cheek in a way Nino supposed was reassuring. “I’m sure you will, very soon.”


	4. Chapter 4

An hour later, Nino found Ohno-san standing in front of the door of the room they were supposed to be sharing, staring at nothing. For a second there, he wondered what was wrong, why the other man was standing there when he could have just let himself in when he realized that Ohno-san didn’t have a key.  
  
“Oh, I’m so sorry!” he said, bowing his head low in apology before quickly whipping out the key to unlock the door. Ohno-san simply waved a hand at him and stood aside as he pushed the door open. “Please go on in, I’m sorry. Have you been waiting here all this time? I’m really, really sorry –“  
  
“It’s okay, Ninomiya-san, I swear. I haven’t been here for long, don’t worry,” Ohno-san mumbled, then gestured for him to go in first. Nino did, vaguely watching Ohno-san from the corners of his eyes.   
  
“Your bed is that one,” he said, pointing at the opposite bed before flopping himself down at the edge of the other one even though he was pretty sure the bed arrangement was obvious. Ohno-san’s workbag was on top of the other one, while Nino’s handheld games were on the other. “I did the courtesy of putting your stuffs in the dresser; I hope you don’t mind,”  
  
“Thank you,” Ohno-san mumbled, patting the blue and yellow bedcover before he sat himself down on it. This close, Nino could see something marring the edges of the other man’s mouth that he wasn’t able to before.   
  
“Are you okay?”   
  
Ohno-san turned then and gave him a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “I was _hoping_ I would be,” Ohno-san said, “when I took on this job, this trip. I just. I’m not sure anymore,”  
  
Nino frowned. He was not sure what Ohno-san was saying, what Nino was being told but it was obvious that it had something to do with how clearly unhappy the other man looked right now. Without knowing he did it, he found himself seated opposite Ohno-san, their knees almost touching.  
  
“I – I probably won’t understand it but if you need to talk to anyone, about anything, at all,  just to you know, listen, I’m here,” he proposed, softly. Nino wasn’t sure what he’s doing, what he was saying but he figured it was the least he could do. Ohno-san sure looked like he could use the company, and well, Nino was not exactly aversed to this. He had been looking forward to spending his free-time with Ohno-san afterall.   
  
Ohno-san’s gaze was glassy when he turned it back to Nino’s face, like he was staring at Nino but wasn’t actually seeing him. It was worrying as much as it was confusing.  
  
“Have you ever found yourself wanting something so badly and not have it even though you did everything you could, every possible thing there is to get it, Ninomiya-san?” Ohno asked so suddenly that Nino was left speechless for a long moment to process the question before his brain was able to come up with a proper, coherent answer.  
  
“A couple of times, yes,” he answered, wondering whether the question was deliberate, intentional, if he’d been asked about it because Ohno was well aware about Nino’s girly crush over the man himself.   
  
“It’s hard, right?” Ohno said, without meeting Nino’s eyes. “It’s difficult, especially when you’re just about ready to give everything up to have it but couldn’t because it’s _too_ late. _You’re_ too late,”  
  
“Ohno-san?”  
  
“I’m sorry, I don’t know why I’m telling you this, Ninomiya-san,” Ohno said, looking so very sad. It took Nino a while to realize that Ohno had stood up, had bowed his head to excuse himself until the other man was at the door and letting himself out without another word.  
  
  
+  
  
An hour before the supposed dinner, someone knocked on the door. Nino was currently trying out a new tie (it’s a blue and red one, a gift from George-san) and was scowling at his reflection on the mirror at how incompetent he was because he couldn’t even get it right. He’d also ditched the anti-nausea patch in favor of downing the prescription pills, two of them instead, mentally kicking himself  in the head for not finding the balls to call or message Aiba to come over and help him with it, while worrying unnecessarily about his dinner trying to escape his mouth the moment the nausea kicked in. He couldn’t, and it wasn’t just because he was pissed at Aiba for being such a terrible cockblocker when he’d never been one for as long as Nino had known him but also for something else. Nino still couldn’t pinpoint what it was; he’d already given up trying to figure it out, at least for now, knowing that he would have plenty of time to do so when they finished this job.   
  
Another knock, louder and more insistent than the one that came before it took his attention from his own scowling reflection on the mirror.   
  
“Just a sec,” he grunted, wondering whether that was Ohno knocking and checking his reflection on the dresser mirror once again before tugging the tie off of his neck completely and throwing it on the bed, thinking he’d have to probably ditch the tie too at this point.  
  
Opening the door, he honestly expected it was Ohno. The man’s clothes were still here, after all, and with the planned dinner not even an hour from now, he supposed Ohno came back to shower and get dressed.  
  
When he opened the door, however, it wasn’t Ohno.   
  
It was Aiba.  
  
“Hey,” said Aiba. Nino felt his pulse skip at the sight of him, annoyed at himself for obviously missing his best friend’s stupid face now that he’d seen him despite the fact that he’s pissed. He was not sure why there was that slightly painful tug in his chest at the almost but not quite smile gracing the corners of Aiba’s mouth, either. “I thought I’d help you with your tie and your anti-nausea patch that’s why I’m here,” Aiba added, looking and sounding sheepish Nino felt like hitting him.  
  
Nino gave himself a full minute to appreciate his bestfriend’s features – the beautifully defined jawline, the slight arch of his brows, the shape of his lips, the crinkle at the corners of his eyes, and the almost unrecognizable laughlines lining the sides of his lips and eyes. Nino noted the fact that Aiba had styled his hair in a seemingly different way this time, brushing half on one side and leaving it there.   
  
_Gorgeous_ , his brain supplied absently and damn it if the insane urge to run his fingers through Aiba’s hair right then and there wasn’t enough to confuse the fuck out of him, then the way his heart was currently trying to beat its way out of his chest surely would. He didn’t realize he was reaching over until he almost did, thankfully catching himself midway before his fingertips were able to touch the nearest part of Aiba he could put his hands on.  
  
“ _Aiba-shi_ –“   
  
Aiba smiled then, soft and apologetic, and the rush of affection that washed over Nino then was too strong and admittedly too sudden he almost tripped on his own two feet in his struggle to reach Aiba as quickly as his legs would allow him, ignoring that tiny voice in his head screaming at him, asking him what the fuck he think he’s doing until he had his arms around Aiba’s waist, belatedly realizing how much he missed the warmth of Aiba’s embrace the second Aiba  folded his arms around him in return.   
  
“Nino, I’m sorry –“  
  
“You bastard,” he gritted, seizing the front of Aiba’s suit jacket trying hard not to cry or laugh or both. He was too damn emotional he didn’t know what was causing it, found himself with his face mashed against the fabric of Aiba’s suit as he felt Aiba’s arms wound around him from behind.   
  
“I know, I know,” Aiba breathed into his hair, voice tender and apologetic. Nino basked at the feel of it, at the feel of Aiba’s arms wound tightly around him, soaking it in for a few lingering minutes before he was pushing him away.  
  
“I hate you so much, I hope you know that,” he told Aiba, jabbing an angry and shaking finger against Aiba’s chest. He was still pissed but he couldn’t deny the fact that seeing Aiba here, now, after the few hours he spent worrying about him, about how he would approach the other man the next time he saw him seemed insignificant now.   
  
He was relieved and equal-parts glad to find that Aiba still couldn’t stand the thought that they were fighting even though they were really not.   
  
“I know,” Aiba agreed, nodding his head and tugging him back in. “I was wrong and I’m sorry,” Aiba admitted, softly, into his hair. Nino said nothing; he just went willingly into Aiba’s arms, only half-worrying about Ohno finding them like this as he breathed Aiba’s familiar scent in.   
  
  
+  
  
The dinner, as expected, was even more fabulous than the previous one they had the night before. The dining room was decorated with disco lights - something Nino still couldn’t believe Jun was able to pull through in such a short time - the tables for two were arranged in a way that every single one was pushed against the wall, leaving the very middle empty for very obvious reasons.  
  
They were standing side by side, he and Aiba, each holding a glass of champagne and watching Jun try to charm the pants off everyone around him as he marched to the front and called Miho-san’s name. The old lady looked adorably surprised for a second before Sho went to her, took her hand in his and led her to the front at the same time Jun gestured for the band to start playing. The happy birthday tune soon began playing and everyone started singing along to it. Even from the distance, the joy on Miho-san’s face was so clear, so obvious that it was striking as it was heartwarming. Nino couldn’t help but feel more than a little proud of himself for coming up with the idea.    
  
Next to him, Aiba murmured something about them not preparing a gift for Miho-san and reminding himself to get her one once they docked.   
  
Maru and Toma were currently downing the contents of their glasses. Ohno and Shihori, Nino realized belatedly, were nowhere in sight.  
  
He frowned, unable to keep himself from wondering, worrying, where the two might be. For one, he was worried that whoever was harassing Shihori had somehow found his way to her again since the rest of them were busy at the moment, and then there was Ohno too. The last time they talked, Ohno-san hinted about something Nino couldn’t exactly place but he knew it had something to do with someone he loved dearly. An ex, perhaps? A girl or a guy, he wasn’t entirely sure.   
  
He didn’t know he was worrying himself silly until he realized he was fidgeting, Aiba grabbing the mostly-empty champagne glass out of his hand before he spilled the rest all over himself.   
  
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Aiba asked, looking and sounding worried. Nino stared at him for what seemed like a full minute before he decided he couldn’t just stay here and worry himself sick when he could actually do something.   
  
Namely, find Shihori and Ohno-san and make sure they’re okay.  
  
“Gotta pee,” he lied through his teeth, “I’ll be back in a few to taste that damn cake so save half a slice for me, yeah?” he said, not giving his bestfriend any chance to stop him, as he started walking towards the dining room door .  
  
  
+  
  
  
He rounded the corner towards the end of the hall where Shihori and Aiba’s room was, clutching the key to his own room, muttering to himself. As expected, the hallways were mostly empty since everyone was presently gathered upstairs, celebrating Miho-san’s birthday.   
  
“ – _stop_ , Shi-chan, just stop!” a familiar voice prompted him to stop walking, raising his head high enough to witness Ohno-san backing Shihori to the wall and kissing her.  
  
  
+  
  
  
Nino knew he should go, or at least politely avert his eyes and leave them be, only he found that he couldn’t. Instead, he stayed there, practically glued on the spot he was standing on as he watched in a sort-of detached way as Ohno-san held Shihori’s face in between his hands while he kissed her.  
  
It was probably just for a few seconds, Nino wasn’t at all sure, but it was over too quickly. Nino realized Shihori had her face turned to the side, obviously avoiding Ohno-san’s lips from catching hers again. She was, Nino noted dazedly, biting her bottom lip hard enough to draw blood as Ohno-san’s thumb stroked her jaw tenderly.  
  
“Let me go,” Shihori said, wriggling out of Ohno-san’s grasp. Nino realized Ohno-san had one of his hands on her waist on a light but careful grip. “Satoshi, I said let me go-”  
  
“No, Shi-chan,” he heard Ohno-san say through the noise of his own blood pounding through his ears, “not until I’m certain you are going to listen to what I have to say-”  
  
“What else is there to say anyway?” she countered, “ _it’s_ over. _We’re_ over. Done. You only need to sign the papers to make it official –“  
  
“Why do you keep on insisting I sign them? I already told you, I’m not going to,” Ohno-san cut in, mouth slashed into a straight, stubborn line. Nino felt more than hear the misery on Ohno-san’s voice and he couldn’t help but remember the way he looked the first and last time they talked.   
  
“We’ve already agreed about this, didn’t we?”  
  
“No, we didn’t; _you_ did,” Ohno-san said, “I respected your decision, I allowed you to leave because I thought you only needed the time to think, the space to breathe but this. I don’t want any of this. You want to punish me, fine. You want to think things over, fine. I’m not going to force you to do what you don’t want to but you can’t ask me to let you go just like that because I can’t, Shi-chan. I _can’t_. I know it’s my fault, I hurt you, I know that, but all I ask is for you to give me another chance, another chance to prove to you that I’m not going to fuck up again. To try it one more time, with me, just like what we promised each other,”  
  
“Satoshi –“  
  
Then, like every single fight he had in his body had been outright drained out of him, Ohno-san leaned in, resting his forehead against Shihori’s shoulder, his hands on Shihori’s nape and waist visibly shaking.   
  
“I promised you that day that I’m going to love you, cherish you for the rest of my life, Shi-chan,” Ohno-san said, his voice tinged with so much misery Nino felt like weeping. “and I know I haven’t done my part well, hadn’t been the best husband a wonderful wife like you deserve but if you would just give me another chance, I’ll make it up to you. I swear, but just - not this, Shi-chan; anything but this. You can ask me for anything, anything at all but I’m not going to sign those divorce papers, Shi-chan,” Ohno-san murmured, “Please don’t make me sign them,” Ohno-san muttered in a trembling voice that made something in Nino’s chest ache, a soft, almost unrecognizable whimpery-sound escaped the back of his throat at the same time a pair of hands shot out from behind him to cover his eyes.   
  
“There you are. I was looking everywhere for you,” then the familiar sound of Aiba’s voice ring through all the confusing chaos he’d witnessed against his will, his back hitting the front of Aiba’s chest as he was tugged off and away from the heartbreaking sight that was Ohno and Shihori.  
  
Aiba let him go once he was sure they were at a respectable distance from where Ohno and Shihori were, Nino opening his eyes to the sight of his bestfriend’s soft and equally knowing smile. “Aiba-chan –“  
  
“Miho-san told me to look for you,” Aiba said, thumb swiping his cheek. He didn’t realize he was crying, didn’t even know what he’s shedding his tears for. “She said you promised her a dance, so, shall we go?“  
  
  
  
It was obviously a lie, one that Nino could tell even with his eyes closed but he guessed for now, it was best not to question it; he just nodded his head and let Aiba guide him forward, away from Ohno-san and Shihori feeling like the  biggest dumbass ever for not realizing things sooner.  
  
  
+  
  
  
To be honest, Nino didn’t expect Aiba to bring him back to the ongoing party upstairs; it was probably obvious that he looked obviously incapable of pretending he was fine when there were a million and things running through his head at the moment.   
  
“Nino, give me the key,” he vaguely registered Aiba’s voice speaking to him again until he realized Aiba was snapping his fingers in front of his face, trying to get his attention. “The key, Nino,”  
  
He blinked, held his hand out, palm spread where the key to his and Ohno-san’s room was resting. Aiba took it without a word, used it to unlock the door without missing a beat. Then he was leading Nino inside in the same hurried movement, Nino going along with it willingly.  
  
The moment the locked turned, Nino felt as though something inside him clicked, too.  
  
“You _knew,”_ he exclaimed under his breath, raising his head high enough to look at Aiba, who was staring back at him seemingly more than a little worried, probably a little terrified. The anger within Nino grew. “You fucking knew and you didn’t tell me,” he seethed. He was probably being unfair, directing his anger towards someone who didn’t deserve it but he’s beyond caring now.   
  
He was up on Aiba’s space before Aiba could blink, backing Aiba against the nearest wall. “All those fucking hints, Aiba-chan!” He half-yelled, angry at himself and at Aiba for making him look like a fool, “you couldn’t have told me he and Shi-chan –“  
  
“I tried!” Aiba yelled back, his arms seizing Nino’s and turning them around till Nino was the one who was backed against the wall this time. “I did try, for fuck’s sake, but you didn’t want to listen!”  
  
“You could have just told me straight to my face!”  
  
“And you would have listened if I did?!”  
  
“God damn it –“ he cursed, all ready to spit the words right at Aiba’s face when Aiba hissed something under his breath, grabbed him by his shoulders roughly enough to startle him, eyes wide in panic the second Aiba’s mouth descended to catch his own for a bruising kiss.   
  
  
+  
  
Nino couldn’t breathe.   
  
He was gripping the front of Aiba’s suit jacket tightly as if his life depended on it, eyes wide open as Aiba’s mouth pressed insistently against his own. The kiss, as Nino supposed it should be, was hurried, obviously done to shut Nino up but it honestly didn’t feel like it. It probably was during the first few seconds, but now, as Nino’s fingers loosened their vice-like grip from Aiba’s suit-front absently, his eyes falling close without volition. The kiss turned out rather unexpectedly tender.   
  
Aiba’s mouth moved against his in a way that left him breathless and giddy. Then he felt more than hear Aiba’s soft exhalation of breath against his face the second Aiba pulled away to allow the air back into their lungs; their foreheads pressed tightly together.  
  
For a moment there, neither of them spoke. Nino realized he was still clinging tightly against Aiba’s suit-front, breathing hard, blinking rapidly into the soft fabric of Aiba’s suit, and wondering what in hell just happened.  
  
“W-What – what was that about?” he murmured, though it was evident in the way Aiba was gasping too that whatever just happened, he wasn’t the only one who was affected by it.   
  
Then, as if on cue, Aiba pulled away as if he’d been burned and Nino felt more than heard the panic on his bestfriend’s voice as he completely backed away.   
  
“Fuck, N-Nino, I –“ Aiba sputtered, scrambling backwards he was almost by the door when he stopped. Nino was still too shocked and too dazed to stop him.After which, he realized his fingers were on his lips, touching them.  
  
“I’m just – I should go,” Aiba said, hurriedly turning around and opening the door to let himself out quickly. When it closed behind him, Nino stared at it; blinking stupidly at it and going ‘ _bugger bugger_ ’ under his breath.   
  
A few minutes have passed that actually felt like hours when there was another knock on the door. Nino didn’t know he could move so fast when he wanted to, even if it was done unconsciously, crossing the short distance to the door the way he did, chest heaving hard as he yanked it open expecting to see his bestfriend.  
  
It wasn’t Aiba though; it was Shihori. “Ninomiya-san, can I come in?” she asked in that soft tone of hers. Nino wondered whether shutting the door to her face would be better but talked himself out of it before he was able to. _They’re adults_ , he reminded himself blithely as he pulled the door wide open to let her in, _better act like one_ , he told himself as he closed the door behind her.  
  
He found her standing near the bed reserved for Ohno, staring at Ohno’s bag. Nino wondered if he should ask her to sit down or just shove Ohno’s bag into her hands and chase her out. He couldn’t, though, despite the fact that he was pissed at her for watching him make a special fool out of himself by flirting with her husband.   
  
Shihori did a quarter turn to face him before she flopped herself on the edge of Ohno’s bed. Nino remained standing where he was, crossing his arms tightly over his chest.  
  
“About earlier, Ninomiya-san –“ she said, then paused. Nino watched her fingers fidget on the hem of her dress before his gaze wandered onto her face – to the smudges of red around her lips to the trail of black staining her cheeks. Nino could feel his anger slowly dissipate at the sight of her.   
  
“Are you here to explain?” he asked. She tilted her head in answer. “You don’t have to, you know?”  
  
She shook her head. “I should,” she said, smiling a little. For a moment there, Nino realized he didn’t need her explanation, nor her apologies so long as he was certain she was happy. And she looked like she was, despite the fact that she was trying to inconspicuously hide it.   
  
Nino remembered the way Ohno had kissed her, touched her as if she was the most precious thing in his world and couldn’t avoid thinking, remembering the way he, too, had felt the same when Aiba kissed him.   
  
“It’s about _Sato_ – Ohno-san and I,” she said, red creeping her cheeks it was adorable. Nino’s heart went out to her and he swore the embarrassment his little crush over Shihori’s husband seemed like a distant memory now.   
  
“What, are you going to apologize for making fun of me in silence because I was planning on stealing your husband from you?” he said, grinning. Shihori looked up, mouth agape and ended up blushing furiously red the moment their eyes meet. She probably wasn’t expecting anyone, especially him for that matter, to know her and Ohno’s supposedly little secret.  
  
“You knew,” she breathed, and it sounded like a statement rather than a question. Nino hummed, walking towards her and sitting himself next to her without missing a beat. “I’m sorry,” she added, softly, when he finally sat down next to her.  
  
“Not until earlier,” he told her, watching her face carefully, “and please don’t be. It’s not your fault your husband is eye-candy,” he teased, only half-joking.  
  
She looked away, mouth curling into a half-smile. “We were supposed to get a divorce,” she said, and for a second there she looked and sounded sad. Nino couldn’t help it, he was reaching over to take her hand in his, letting her know he was there to listen.   
  
“I thought he was okay with it, that we’d go through with it once he was ready but then a week ago, I found him in the office, talking with Joushima-san,” she said. He didn’t dare speak and just let her continue. “I didn’t know what happened but he was hired at the same time I was called into the office,”  
  
“Did Joushima-san know about you two?”  
  
She shook her head. “I don’t suppose he did. I never told anyone I am married, not that it mattered anyway, and I hadn’t exactly changed my name to his so it was easier. Plus, no one bothered to ask,”  
  
“I knew I should have asked you when I had the chance,” he teased her, “it’s just that it always seemed to slip my mind when I’m talking to you,” he said. She giggled in return and he gave her hand one last squeeze before he let go. “Why do want to get a divorce anyway?” he asked, honestly curious.  
  
She shrugged. “I thought we didn’t love each other as much as we did before,” she said, “especially him,” she added, “I mean, I thought it wasn’t there anymore, that we were better off without each other,” she mumbled, shaking her head and looking slightly annoyed with herself. “I was so stupid,”  
  
He smiled at that, couldn’t not, because obviously, she realized she was wrong. Whatever made her doubt her husband’s feelings for her had obviously been slowly erased and Ohno’s earlier confession probably helped her realize it, too.   
  
“So in a way, it seemed that my little crush over that fisherman-slash-dancer husband of yours helped you realize that you’re disgustingly in love with each other still and that getting a divorce is plain stupid, is that it?” he said. Shihori giggled and lightly aimed a swat against his arm as if she couldn’t help herself.   
  
“In a way, yes,” she said, a smile dimpling her cheeks. Nino chuckled.   
  
“Then I should probably get paid for it, seriously,” he joked. “I mean, forget the secondhand embarrassment I suffered because of all this, I honestly think I should be compensated for bringing you guys back together,” he said, expecting her to laugh at him, the way she always did when he teased her, but what he didn’t expect were her arms going around his neck so suddenly and her lips pressing a sound kiss to his cheek.   
  
“I’ll talk to him about it, I promise,” she said, then, without warning, she turned, her lips so close to his ear, she said, “I got my man back, Ninomiya-san,” she whispered, sounding happy and equal-parts grateful. “don’t you think it’s high time you get yours too?” in that conspiratorial tone of hers that warmed him to his toes before she let him go. He frowned at her, but she merely gave him a wink and a mysterious smile to match it, leaving Nino gaping at her as she pulled away. She stood up before Nino could even ask her what she meant, watched her make her way out of the room as quietly as she had entered it.  
  
 _I got my man back, Ninomiya-san. Don’t you think it’s high time you get yours too?_  
  
The realization, when it finally hit him was shocking and equal-parts aggravating he found himself staggering on his feet on his attempt to get to the door as fast as his wobbly legs would allow him, heart beating unusually fast inside his chest and his bestfriend’s name dangling at the tips of his tongue.   
  
  
+  
  
  
The after-dinner ballroom party was, as expected, still ongoing when Nino made it back up there. The dining hall-converted dance floor was filled with boomers, dancing and obviously having the time of their lives. Nino’s gaze went past them, past the people gathered at the center to find his bestfriend’s familiar figure among the crowd but no luck.   
  
The first he saw was Jun and Sho, standing side by side in a dimly-lighted corner and sipping on their drinks. He was about to step forward when a slightly cold hand closed around his elbow, tugging him back before he was able to walk off.   
  
“Kazu-kun, are you alright?” it was Miho-san. She looked at sounded worried as she stepped up to him, pressing her palm against his cheek.   
  
“Miho-san, have you seen Aiba-chan?” he asked her, tugging her aside as gently as he could manage it. He probably sounded as hurried as he felt though it was kinda difficult; with the way he was gazing past her shoulders to check the crowd behind her for any sign of Aiba, he knew she could tell he was not okay. “I’ve been looking around for him but I couldn’t find him,” he explained.   
  
He wasn’t sure what was particularly good at what he said but nevertheless, it made Miho-san smile. Before he realized it, she was folding her arms around him, tugging him into one of the warmest embrace he had ever received in his life.   
  
“Near the back, he’s drinking with Toma-kun and Maru-kun,” she whispered, squeezing him tight; “go, Kazu-kun, go.”  
  
“Thank you,” he pressed a kiss into her forehead, smiling gratefully. “I’ll see you later, yeah?”  
  
“Yes, now go.”   
  
+  
  
He found Aiba near the back, just as Miho-san told him. He wasn’t drinking with Toma or Maru though, but dancing with someone Nino didn’t recognize. Nino was sure Aiba saw him as soon as he arrived but looked like he was busy pretending he didn’t, as he wormed his arms around his partner’s waist. Nino felt his annoyance increased tenfolds at the sight.  
  
“Aiba-chan, can I talk to you for a minute?” he said, vaguely seeing Toma dragging Maru away one-handedly. Aiba continued to act like he hadn’t heard a thing.   
  
“Aiba Masaki, are you deaf?” he half-yelled, vaguely aware that he was attracting attention to himself but he didn’t care. Damn it but Aiba should have expected this after what he did earlier. He really should have. “I said I need a minute, so if you could be a darling and tell the lovely lady you’d have to leave for a bit and that you’ll be back to dance with her later because I swear to god if you’re not here in two seconds I’m going to throw myself off the ship and I don’t care if you have to jump off to follow me,” he said, turning around and marching away, half-hoping Aiba would follow and half-expecting he would be disappointed as he stalked his way towards the nearest exit.  
  
  
+  
  
  
He didn’t even need to walk very far, opting on leaning back against the hallway’s wall leading to their rooms knowing that the chances of anyone walking past them at this hour was the slightest since everyone was still at the dining hall. Nino spied Aiba rounding the corner, tie loosened, hair no longer perfectly styled as it was the first time Nino saw it but Nino couldn’t deny the fact that Aiba still looked as gorgeous as ever. Nino found it difficult to look away, wondering how on earth he only realized this now, how in hell he didn’t see any of this before.   
  
Or maybe he did, maybe he’d always known it, this affection he had for Aiba that somehow always seemed to be more than what was supposed to be. He’d known it, of course, _of course_ , only he didn’t think acting on it was the right way to go then. They were best friends after all, and despite Nino’s admittedly countless faults as a person, messing up his relationship with a friend, most of all his best friend, wasn’t one of them.  
  
But what happened earlier completely changed Nino’s perspective about the whole thing; the kiss Aiba gave him earlier, the way he’d been acting around Nino lately too had only cemented the fact that both of them had been trying to keep their feet from crossing that forbidden line for years, at least until today.  
  
Aiba looked uneasy as he walked the rest of the way towards him, stopping when he was a few feet away from Nino, copying Nino’s stance when he was close enough to do so by leaning back against the wall next to Nino. For a few minutes, no one talked; the air between them felt heavy and Nino found it hard to breathe through it.  
  
“Kazu, I –“  
  
“Don’t you dare tell me you’re sorry because I swear to my grandmother’s grave that the moment I hear you say it, I’m going to punch you so hard until you take it back,” he cut in, not bothering raising his head lest he would lose his admittedly tiny courage he was able to gather on his way here once he saw the uncertainty marring his bestfriend’s forehead.   
  
“I wasn’t going to,” Aiba said, voice low, soft; Nino felt like closing his eyes and crossing the short distance separating them, that insane urge to press himself against his best friend’s side to borrow the familiar warmth of Aiba’s body was too strong he could barely resist it but he held himself.   
  
“What were you going to say then?” he countered, tasting something awful beneath his tongue at the silence that followed after.   
  
“I don’t know, really,” Aiba mumbled. “an apology for doing something I shouldn’t have done maybe?”  
  
“I’ll accept that apology,” he said, bravely; “but only if you tell me you didn’t mean it.”   
  
“Nino –“  
  
“So, tell me,” he cut in, knowing he was being unfair but to hell with it. Aiba couldn’t just expect him to forget it, or to shut up about it either. “If you didn’t mean it, just say so and I won’t ask you again. We’ll leave this behind us, forget it ever happened,”  
  
“You want me to be honest with you?” Aiba asked a moment later.   
  
“Obviously,”  
  
“I love you,” Aiba said, voice just loud enough for Nino to hear.   
  
“Of course you do,” he countered, not giving himself enough reason to hope that this was going into the direction he was hoping it would, and scared it might be the case afterall. Having his heart broken twice in a day had to be the worst thing ever, especially when he knew the second one would hurt a thousand times worse than the first.  
  
But to be honest, he wasn’t even that much upset about his failed attempt with Ohno, not after he learned the truth about him and Shi-chan but this? His bestfriend kissing him and telling him he did it just to shut him up would kill him, he just knew it.   
  
“We wouldn’t be friends, let alone best friends if you didn’t,” he followed, steeling his resolve enough to raise his head to look at Aiba. “It’s kind of a given, don’t you think?”  
  
“Shall I rephrase it for you, then?” Aiba said, sounding and looking weary. “I’m _in_ love with you,” Aiba admitted, “and I have been for a while now,” he added. Nino blinked and blinked, feeling a little disoriented as he stared at his bestfriend’s unsmiling face.   
  
“Y-You’re kidding.”  
  
“You know I’m not, Nino,” Aiba said, “you told me to be honest, so I’m _being_ honest. Please don’t make me lie to you by taking it back because I _can’t_ – I _won’t_ , I’m sorry.”  
  
It took him a long while to come up with a proper answer, but even then it still felt and sounded ridiculous even in his own ear when he said it.   
  
“But I thought you were straight!”   
  
The corner of Aiba’s mouth twitched. “I thought so too,” he said, “until you came along and fucked everything up.”  
  
“What?”  
  
Somehow, it made perfect sense for Aiba to cross the tiny distance between them then, for Aiba to pull him into his bestfriend’s arms as if it was the most natural thing. Somehow, Nino found himself leaning further into that familiar warmth without even realizing it.   
  
“I was straight, I swear to god I was, at least up until seven years ago when you sashayed your way into Joushima-san’s office like a common jerk,” Aiba explained joking and Nino could hear the smile on his voice even without seeing his face, Aiba’s lips pressed into the side of his temple the way he’d done so many times before. Only this time, everything about the gesture felt different, and Nino could feel the effect of it down to the marrow of his bones. “Then you smiled at me the first time and I swear it felt like something had hit me with a sledgehammer; you only had to smile that one smile of yours and it was as if you had me signed up for a lifelong deal even without saying anything.”  
  
“I – “ he stuttered, fingers clutching the front of Aiba’s suit, wondering how in hell he didn’t see it. “why didn’t you say anything, then? If that was the case, don’t you think I have a right to know?”  
  
“You wouldn’t have believed me,” Aiba said, softly enough that the sound of his voice almost got lost in between the noises Nino’s heart was making inside his chest. “I told you just now and you still wouldn’t believe me, what more if I did it back then? I’m sure it wouldn’t have boded well. I’d have lost you immediately and that’s – that’s the thing I can’t stand. Just the thought of it, just the thought of losing you because of my selfishness scares me, Nino, so I didn’t. It’s better to keep this a secret than to tell you and then lose you in the end instead.”  
  
God, if that didn’t make him feel like a million dollar, Nino didn’t’ know what else would. He felt like hugging the shit out of his best friend now, maybe catch him off guard with a kiss the same way Aiba did to him but he didn’t think he had enough courage to do it. At least not yet. “Is that why you hate Ohno-san?”   
  
“I told you I don’t hate him,” Aiba said, “I just. I was jealous,” Aiba admitted, sounding pained. Nino couldn’t help it, he giggled, digging his nose into the front of Aiba’s chest. “Of course, laugh at my pain why don’t you?”  
  
“You’re stupid,” he said, voice muffled by the fact that he still had his face mashed against the fabric of his bestfriend’s suit. “I mean, seriously, I never stand a chance, what with the fact that he was head over heels with Shi-chan. Also, didn’t you know that he’s married to her?” he asked, frowning.  “I thought you did,”  
  
“What?”   
  
“They’re married but were supposed to get a divorce, only Ohno-san didn’t want to. Said the reason why he joined the company was to convince her not to go through with it.”  
  
“I seriously didn’t know that,” Aiba said, sounding shocked, maybe a little surprised. “I swear I didn’t know that there’s more to what I saw the night before, to what they obviously didn’t want us to know,” Aiba explained, tugging him back when he tried to pull away. He wasn’t sure why every single familiar gesture now felt so different when they weren’t so before. “but after I saw him and Shi-chan last night –“  
  
“You should have told me, you know?”  
  
Aiba squeezed him in answer. “I didn’t want to hurt you.”  
  
He chuckled. “Aiba-chan, I’m not in love with the man,” he said, fingering the collar of Aiba’s dress shirt before purposely letting his hand work its way to Aiba’s jaw and keeping it there. “To be honest, I don’t even like him that much, but I just thought that since you went through all the trouble to think that I would, eventually, I told myself why not give it a try? At least Matsumoto won’t be the only happy guy in the group.”  
  
“Right,” Aiba said, “remind me not to involve myself in your future affairs from now on, then.”  
  
He smiled at that, couldn’t not, feeling warm at the fact that this, right here, was the one thing he’d been waiting for. He didn’t know it was even possible to feel this happy, but it turned out he didn’t have to wonder anymore. He only needed to make sure he and Aiba wanted the same thing and that they were willing to jump over that line they both unconsciously agreed they wouldn’t cross and that was that.   
  
“Sure,” he agreed, forming a loose fist against the hem of Aiba’s suit as he pushed himself up and pressed himself closer to nuzzle his best friend’s chin. “Though, if you ask me, I’d say, why won’t you become my future affair instead?” he asked, giggling at how ridiculously cheesy that came out. Aiba stiffened against him in answer and Nino realized he doubted himself again.   
  
Hiding his face into the crook of Aiba’s neck, he sighed, worming his arms around Aiba’s waist.   
  
“But it’s okay if you don’t want to,” he said, “I’ll completely understand it if you think we shouldn’t – I mean –“  
  
“I – Nino, are you serious?”  
  
“I’m in love with you, too.” he said instead, pushing his face further into Aiba’s neck, clinging to that familiar warmth that was Aiba’s body, and knowing that this, right here, was where he knew he’d always wanted to be. “so, yes, of course, I’m serious,”  
  
“Oh god,” Aiba exclaimed, in wonder and in glee Nino didn’t know anymore; he couldn’t, he hadn’t the chance to ponder over it when there were fingers grasping his chin and then there was Aiba’s mouth claiming his for a kiss that was both fierce and tender he was gasping for breath trying to kiss Aiba back, clinging unto Aiba’s arms desperately.  
  
  
+  
  
  
At three o’clock next day, Nino and his four boomers, along with the rest of FOREVER YOUNG and their clients, docked off of the cruise ship with minimal fuzz. Everyone seemed happy despite the obvious fact that they were all still trying to get their balance back now that they were on solid ground again.   
  
He was in the middle of dropping Rika-san and Miho-san’s bags when Jun approached him.  
  
“Client meeting the day after tomorrow, so we expect you to be in the office the day before,” Jun told him. He nodded and went  back to check out the ladies’ other bags when he realized Jun hadn’t left. In fact, he was staring at Nino thoughtfully.  
  
“What?”  
  
“You look – different,” Jun said.  
  
“Different how?”  
  
“You seem – happy,” Jun said. “I don’t know, it’s – kind of weird,”  
  
He grinned. “Stop psychoanalyzing me, you creep,” he told Jun though he knew he was smiling like a lunatic. Well, it wasn’t like he couldn’t help it, really. “Seriously, go away.”  
  
“Oh my god, what happened to you?”  
  
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he countered, smile still in place. “Leave me alone already.”  
  
“You look so happy it’s actually kinda scary,” Jun commented, though it didn’t escape Nino that Jun was grinning too.   
  
“Well, apparently, multiple orgasms can do that to you,” he said, “so go try it. I’m sure Sho-chan would be very much willing to accommodate you.”  
  
“I hope you know that I hate you so much right now, god.” Jun mumbled, red-faced, before he turned completely around.   
  
Nino grinned. “Don’t worry, the feeling is mutual, Matsumoto.”  
  
  
+  
  
  
“I see that you look so much happier now than the first time I met you,” Miho-san told him as he was handing her other stuff over. Behind him, he met Aiba’s gaze and felt himself shiver at the memory of Aiba’s mouth on him the night before, of his own tracing Aiba’s body tirelessly.   
  
He blushed, tried his best to hide it behind one of her bags but was obviously failing. He froze when he remembered something she said to him the day before, then shaking his head when he realized everyone must have known he and Aiba had this thing going on for what seemed like forever but neither of them noticed it.   
  
“You think so?”  
  
“I know so,” she smiled and gave his arm a squeeze which he reciprocated with a smacking kiss to her cheek. He stepped away, nodding at Aiba who was also helping his charges with their bags wondering where he would end up spending the night later. He grinned, knowing that it didn’t matter where it would be so long as he was with Aiba.  
  
He turned to her and hitched her and Rika-san’s bags up his shoulders. “Shall we go, ladies?”   
  
  
-End-


End file.
